Samsung replaced as world’s leading semiconductor firm

According to a new study, the South Korean conglomerate has been ousted as the biggest earner from semiconductor manufacturing.

The report produced by Counterpoint Research shows the semiconductor division of Samsung Electronics revenue fell from $ 70.2 billion in 2022 to $ 43.4 billion in 2023.

American multinational corporation Intel took a pole position with $ 50.5 billion in 2023 revenue, a slight decline of 16% from the previous year.

Intel’s market share for 2023 was 9.7% compared to Samsung’s 8.3%, giving the U.S. company the edge over its rival.

Samsung Electronics took another hit this month with the news that the phone manufacturing side of the company would lose a decade of dominance in device sales to Apple.

Samsung is expected to bounce back in 2024

The South Korean tech giant is set to record an improvement this year. The country is a trade-reliant entity, and the global instability of Chinese trade relations and the Russia-Ukraine war are said to have taken a toll across a turbulent 2023.

A surge late last year in November gave Samsung Electronics hope of reclaiming the top spot in semiconductor production, a Bloomberg report showed.

Chip production would soar 42% in the latter half of last year, rivaling only 2017 records for the electronics manufacturer. Shipments would also see a massive upsurge by 80% to levels only seen in 2002, the study from the South Korean National Statistics Office would highlight.

The Ministry of Economy and Finance’s Economic Bulletin for January reinforced a healthy outlook for South Korean production:

”Despite uneven recovery across the economy, gradual signs of an upturn are emerging, mainly driven by a rebound in manufacturing production and exports, especially semiconductors, as well as strong job growth.”

Samsung had a busy Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this year with a diverse showing — including a team-up with Google for universal Android device sharing called Quick Share and the first-ever Micro LD TV.

NVIDIA storms the global revenue rankings

The Counterpoint report showed that NVIDIA had taken advantage of global investment in artificial intelligence (AI) with a year-on-year increase of 86% in revenue from 2022.

The Californian company would go from tenth in the global rankings last year to third. Marking the first top-five spot for the company in global semiconductor revenues.

The CEO of NVIDIA, Jensen Huang, met with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s (TSMC) C. C. Wei this month to discuss the extent of U.S. trade sanctions.

The U.S. sanctions have proved to be an obstacle as the Department of Commerce has frowned upon the sale of state-of-the-art AI chips to China.

The global chip and semiconductor race looks set to be an interesting one as 2024 unfolds.

Image Credit: Ahn Nhat, Unsplash.

Brian-Damien Morgan

Freelance Journalist

Brian-Damien Morganis an award-winning journalist and features writer. He was lucky enough to work in the print sector for many UK newspapers before embarking on a successful career as a digital broadcaster and specialist.

His work has spanned the public and private media sectors of the United Kingdom for almost two decades.

Since 2007, Brian has continued to add to a long list of publications and institutions, most notably as Editor of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, winning multiple awards for his writing and digital broadcasting efforts.

Brian would then go on to be integral to the Legacy 2014, Media and Sport Directorate of the Scottish Government. Working with ministers to enact change through sport with institutions like the Homeless World Cup.

He would then lend his skills to multiple private sector institutions. Brian would win national acclaim helping his country deliver judicial education and communications during the pandemic-era. Earning a writ of personal distinction from the Lord President of Scotland for his efforts as the Head of Communications and Digital for the Judicial Office for Scotland.

Brian has returned back to the thing he loves most, writing and commenting on developments across technology, gaming and legal topics, as well as any-and-all things sport related.