IANS | 28 Jun, 2024
The semiconductor lobby groups of South Korea and the United States
discussed ways to expand bilateral cooperation in technology research and
maintaining a stable supply chain, Seoul's industry ministry said on Friday.
The US-Korea Supply Chain and Commercial Dialogue Semiconductor Forum,
held in Washington, was organised following an agreement between the two
countries in April last year to create an event to explore ways to expand ties
in the sector, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
During the event, Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun and U.S. Commerce
Secretary Gina Raimondo, as well as officials from leading chipmakers,
including Samsung Electronics Co., SK hynix Inc., Intel Corp. and IBM Corp.,
shared ideas on expanding cooperation in different areas of the industry,
reports Yonhap news agency.
The Korea Semiconductor Industry Association and the U.S. Semiconductor
Industry Association also signed a memorandum of understanding to hold the
forum regularly and seek business partnerships in emerging sectors, including
artificial intelligence.
"South Korea plans to expand investment in global research and
development projects, and support bilateral technology cooperation through the
Global Industrial Technology Cooperation Centers," Ahn said.
Ahn added that the country will also promote exchanges of experts with
master's or doctoral degrees to address the workforce shortage in the chip
industry.
Meanwhile, industry ministry said it has launched technology cooperation
centres at four US universities to expand bilateral ties in cutting-edge
industries.
The Global Industrial Technology Cooperation Centres set sail at Yale
University, Johns Hopkins University, Purdue University and the Georgia
Institute of Technology, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and
Energy.
The ministry plans to increase the number of such centres to 12 by 2027.