According to Yonhap News Agency, Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong recently issued a stern warning to company executives, stating that Samsung Group has lost its internal drive and is facing a life-or-death crisis. He demanded that executives adopt a "desperate situation, desperate measures" approach to the challenges of the AI era. Since the end of last month, Samsung Group has organized a large-scale seminar titled "Reshaping Samsung's Strength," with over 2,000 executives from subsidiaries like Samsung Electronics in attendance.
In a video played at the seminar, although Lee Jae-yong did not appear, he conveyed a strong message: "What matters is not the crisis itself, but our attitude towards it. Even if it means sacrificing immediate profits, we must invest in the future." Each attendee received a crystal plaque engraved with a message from Lee Jae-yong, urging them to be "strong in crisis, resilient in adversity, and tenacious in competition" as Samsung employees.
Behind this warning is Samsung's lagging position in the AI chip sector. Samsung has fallen behind its domestic rival SK Hynix in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) business and has faced setbacks in obtaining Nvidia certification. Samsung's chip division head, Jeon Young-hyun, also admitted the company needs to review its organizational culture and processes, leading to a trip to the US in February this year to meet with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
Samsung's difficulties are not limited to the AI chip sector. Data shows that Samsung Electronics' global market share for televisions dropped from 30.1% in 2023 to 28.3% last year, its smartphone market share fell from 19.7% to 18.3%, and its market share in the dominant DRAM sector decreased from 42.2% to 41.5%. Analysts predict a 22.5% drop in Samsung Electronics' operating profit in the first quarter of 2025.
It's noteworthy that during Lee Jae-yong's ten years as the de facto leader of Samsung, the company's return on equity has steadily declined. The gap with TSMC has widened from 4.5 percentage points to 14 percentage points, leading to market criticism labeling Samsung as an "inefficient dinosaur." Last September, Samsung Electronics also implemented a layoff plan, with some overseas departments experiencing cuts as high as 30%.
This series of crises has sparked widespread discussion on South Korean social media platforms, with some netizens calling for Samsung Group to abandon its family-controlled model and replace Lee Jae-yong with a professional manager.