South Korea is planning to open an AI semiconductor innovation center in Silicon Valley. The Korean Semiconductor Industry Association (KSIA) said on Wednesday it would take applications up to the 30th of this month for those who wish to reside at the planned center. A committee will review the applicants in June and those who pass will start moving in in August. This program is part of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s project to promote system semiconductor technology for export. The project started in April and aims to form research platforms in the US and China. The ministry is working with industry associations such as KSIA for the project. A KSIA spokesperson told TheElec that the center will give independent offices for three to four companies and also have a large, open space to house other companies. The association is planning to complete renting the office center for the center by next month. To support the local sales activity of the companies, it is also looking to name an expert who has long experience in overseas semiconductor marketing and sales as the head of the center. KSIA currently has two final candidates for the post, sources said. The center will also support companies’ prototype testing, verification, and provide other assistance. Meanwhile, the ministry’s project is also providing funding to the Korea China System IC Institute, which was founded in 2012 and has a similar role as the planned San Jose center. The US is the world’s largest market for high-performance computing chips such as those for AI, while China was a major market for low- to mid-end system chips, a government spokesperson said. Over 60% of the funding for the ministry’s project will go to the US and the remainder to China, they added.
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