Qualcomm CEO Visits Korea to Negotiate Memory Supply and 2nm Foundry Deal with Samsung & SK Hynix

QCOM President and CEO Cristiano Amon visited Korea on the 20th–21st, holding back-to-back meetings with senior executives from 005930 and 000660. Multiple Korean outlets including Korea Economic Daily and Electronic Times reported that the key agenda items were securing memory supply volumes and advancing cooperation on 005930's 2nm foundry process.

Amon's visit follows a pattern of global semiconductor heavyweights making pilgrimages to Korea — a list that already includes NVDA's Jensen Huang and AMD's Lisa Su. As the AI chip race intensifies, Korea's gravitational pull as the center of the global memory supply chain has never been stronger.

A Seoul Visit Just Ten Days After the CXMT Deal

There is a pointed backdrop to this visit. Just ten days prior, on April 11th, reports emerged that QCOM had bypassed the memory 'Big 3' — 005930, 000660, and MU — and initiated a joint development program with Chinese memory maker CXMT for customized smartphone DRAM.

With Korean chipmakers focused on HBM (High Bandwidth Memory), CXMT has been moving into the relatively underserved smartphone and mobile DRAM segment. For Korean manufacturers, failing to solidify ties with QCOM risks ceding further ground to CXMT. This visit took place against that backdrop of strategic tension — making it far more than a routine supply discussion, with complex and intertwined strategic interests on both sides.

Targeting the AI Inference Chip Market — Stable Memory Supply Is the Key

QCOM has been aggressively pushing into the data center AI inference chip market. Unlike the AI training chip segment dominated by NVDA, the inference market remains competitively fluid. Breaking into that space, however, requires securing a stable supply of high-performance server DRAM.

During this visit, QCOM is reported to have discussed with 005930 and 000660 not just volume procurement, but the possibility of co-developing custom-designed server DRAM optimized for its AI chip architecture — a move that would deepen integration between chip design and memory engineering.

A Samsung Foundry Comeback After Four Years?

The most closely watched question surrounding this visit is whether QCOM will re-engage 005930's foundry business on a 2nm process contract. In 2022, QCOM shifted its primary manufacturing to TSM following thermal issues with Snapdragon chips produced for Galaxy smartphones. Since then, QCOM's flagship mobile and PC chips have been predominantly manufactured on TSM's process nodes.

However, QCOM disclosed earlier this year at CES 2026 that it had been among the first to initiate discussions with 005930's foundry on 2nm process collaboration. Industry observers widely view CEO Amon's in-person visit as a final alignment phase aimed at closing a deal — moving beyond working-level talks. If a contract is formalized, it would represent the return of a multi-trillion-won anchor customer for 005930's foundry business, potentially serving as a pivotal turning point for a division that has been struggling with yield issues and deteriorating profitability.

Both 005930 and 000660 confirmed that meetings with CEO Amon took place, but declined to disclose the specifics of what was discussed.

Related Stocks & ETFs

🇺🇸 Directly Involved Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) — Visiting party; AI inference chip & mobile AP design 🇰🇷 Korean Partners Samsung Electronics (KRX: 005930) — 2nm foundry cooperation discussions; memory supply SK Hynix (KRX: 000660) — HBM & server DRAM cooperation discussions 🏭 Foundry & Competitors TSMC (NYSE: TSM) — QCOM's current primary foundry Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) — Foundry market competitor AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) — AI inference chip market competitor 🔧 Semiconductor Equipment (Supply Chain Beneficiaries) Micron (NASDAQ: MU) — Memory supply competitor; exposed to CXMT dynamic Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) — Equipment supplier for 2nm process Lam Research (NASDAQ: LRCX) — Etch & deposition equipment KLA Corp (NASDAQ: KLAC) — Process inspection equipment 📈 ETFs iShares Semiconductor (NASDAQ: SOXX) — Flagship semiconductor ETF VanEck Semiconductor (NASDAQ: SMH) — Semiconductor ETF (high TSMC weighting) Invesco Semiconductor (NASDAQ: SOXQ) — Low-cost semiconductor ETF KOSEF Semiconductor (KRX: 091160) — Leading domestic Korean semiconductor ETF