Samsung Jay Y. Lee visits display worksite to encourage innovation, investment

Jay Y. Lee touring the Asan campus’s quantum dot-organic light-emitting diode (QD-OLED) production line. [Photo provided by Samsung Electronics]

Jay Y. Lee, executive chairman of Samsung Electronics Co., paid a surprise visit to Samsung Display Co.’s Asan Campus in South Chungcheong Province in a show of commitment to overcome hardships in the display industry through preemptive and aggressive investment.

According to Samsung Electronics on Tuesday, Lee toured the campus’s quantum dot-organic light-emitting diode (QD-OLED) production line and reviewed business strategy. He discussed the current situation of the display market for information technology (IT) devices, electronic device display business, and next-generation display technology development roadmap with key executives. He also examined the status of technology development.

Lee also spoke with the site employees and underscored the importance of “continuous innovation and preemptive investment to build unbeatable skills.”

The visit was made one day before the 40th anniversary of the so-called “Tokyo Declaration” by Samsung Group founder Lee Byung-chull. On Feb. 8 1983, Lee announced a plan to engage in the semiconductor business while in a business trip in Tokyo, Japan, which is seen as a starting point for Korea to become a global chip powerhouse.

Following the declaration, Samsung Electronics built a chip factory in just six months, which normally takes more than 18 months, and developed a 64K dynamic random access memory (DRAM) as the world’s third country after the U.S. and Japan.

Lee’s visit to the display worksite suggests his commitment to overcome crisis in the display industry.

The global display market had been dominated by Korean companies like Samsung and LG but they now are now chased closely by Chinese rivals. Global demand for displays has also declined.

Industry insiders noted that Lee’s visit may signal aggressive investment in display.

“Lee seems to have visited the display campus to seek a new investment plan to take the lead in the future market,” said an unnamed official from the conglomerate circle.