Samsung Electronics and SK Group have submitted opinion letters expressing their intention to participate in the “U.S.-made artificial intelligence (AI) export program” being promoted by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. If the two companies join this program, cooperation between South Korea and the United States in semiconductors and other AI industries is expected to become even more solid.

According to the U.S. Federal Register on the 21st (local time), Samsung Electronics and SK Group submitted official comment letters on this program to the U.S. Department of Commerce on the 12th and 13th, respectively. Earlier, in July, President Trump declared that “the United States will win the AI supremacy competition” and signed three executive orders related to AI. The plan is to encourage the export of a “full-stack” package of U.S.-made AI technologies in order to standardize U.S. AI technology in the global market, expand industrial dominance, and reduce the international community’s dependence on Chinese technology. Samsung Electronics and SK Group have indicated that they intend to join this initiative by the Trump administration.

In its letter, Samsung Electronics stated, “U.S. companies will lead the consortium, but participation by long-standing allies such as Korea and trusted companies such as Samsung is essential for the successful operation of the program.” It also stressed, “With its expertise in edge devices and other areas, Samsung can make a uniquely valuable contribution to the program’s success through full-stack solutions.” As Samsung has strengths across semiconductors and software, it can provide support throughout the entire AI operation process.

SK Group also said in its letter, “We share the administration’s goal of leading the global rollout of safe, reliable, and innovative AI systems,” adding, “SK’s cutting-edge technologies and highly dependable products and services can contribute to achieving the objectives of the AI Action Plan and the export program.”

The semiconductor industry expects that the expression of intent to participate by Korean companies will further strengthen AI cooperation between South Korea and the United States. This is because, while ensuring a stable supply of key AI semiconductors such as high-bandwidth memory (HBM) to the United States, it could also create an opportunity in the mid to long term to draw policy and institutional support from the U.S. government for the domestic semiconductor industry. In particular, there are projections that it will have a positive impact on the expanding AI cooperation with U.S. Big Tech companies, which has recently been gaining significant momentum. However, there are concerns that as cooperation with the United States deepens, constraints and burdens related to business operations in China could increase.

Kim Jeong-ho, professor in the School of Electrical Engineering at KAIST, said, “If participation by Korean companies in the U.S.-made AI export program is confirmed, the United States will be able to secure a stable supply of memory semiconductors, and Korean companies will gain an opportunity to enhance the predictability of their business activities.”

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