Google's "TurboQuant" technology, which dramatically reduces the memory required to run artificial intelligence, is shaking up the global semiconductor market. TurboQuant is a "game changer" that cuts AI memory usage to one-sixth and boosts computing speed by up to eight times. On the 26th, when Google disclosed the algorithm framework, shares of Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS) plunged 4.6% and 6.0% respectively, while overseas chipmakers including Micron and SanDisk also fell more than 3.0%. Although commercializing the technology will take considerable time and performance verification is still needed, the prospect that it could reshape the semiconductor paradigm if realized was reflected negatively in markets. For Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, which dominate the memory market as an oligopoly, the arrival of this powerful disruptor leaves no room for complacency.
To be sure, some assessments suggest that TurboQuant technology, contrary to immediate concerns, could have a greater positive effect by elevating AI semiconductor demand to a higher level. Still, the "TurboQuant shock" of that day may serve as a warning that not even a moment of complacency is permissible in cutting-edge industries such as semiconductors and AI, where innovation occurs every day. China, whose presence in internal combustion engine vehicles was negligible behind Japan, the United States, and Korea, conquered the global market by leading electric vehicle innovation — a representative example of a "quantum jump." China seized the No. 1 market share position with low-cost LFP (lithium iron phosphate) batteries, taking on the NCM (nickel, cobalt, manganese) batteries that Korea once dominated. Chinese EVs and batteries confirmed that a single breakthrough technology can trigger a seismic shift in an entire industrial ecosystem.
Dismissing Google's TurboQuant technology as merely academic could lead to irreversible setbacks. The battle for semiconductor supremacy has already transcended competition among companies, becoming a strategic contest on which nations' fates depend. If even a small crack forms in Korea's semiconductor industry — which accounts for 25% of the country's exports and 40% of KOSPI market capitalization — the entire economy will inevitably be shaken. Moreover, rival companies in the United States, China, Taiwan, and elsewhere could emerge with yet another breakthrough technology to pressure Korea. What matters most is a consistent strategy from the government and ruling party. There must be no further hesitation in activating a comprehensive support system encompassing exemptions from the 52-hour workweek, talent development, cluster formation, and power grid expansion.