SEOUL — Samsung says it will invest more than $29 billion over the next three years in innovative businesses that will drive its future growth, primarily in the areas of artificial intelligence, 5G, automotive electronics components and biopharmaceuticals.
Samsung made the announcement Wednesday in a corporate news release that said it was committing to an investment of 25 trillion South Korean won (a little over $29 billion Canadian at today’s Bank of Canada exchange rate) as part of a larger initiative “to become a leading force in building and energizing the ecosystem of innovative businesses for the digital economy.”
The company also said it will open up its C-Lab venture incubation program to both external and internal start-up projects. The program will benefit 500 projects — 300 external candidates and 200 internal to the company — in the next five years to encourage innovations and entrepreneurship, Samsung said.
In May, the company’s Samsung Research America division opened up a new AI Centre in downtown Toronto at the MaRS Discovery District, as part of Samsung's network of research centres dedicated to research and development in the field of AI.
In its news release on Wednesday, Samsung said it plans to significantly expand its AI research capability, by increasing the number of advanced AI researchers in its global AI Centres to 1,000. In addition, the company said it plans to invest aggressively to become a global player in the advanced markets for 5G chipsets and related devices and equipment.
With respect to automotive electronics components, Samsung said it aims to become a leader in components for future cars, such as system-on-chips for autonomous driving, leveraging its expertise in semiconductors, telecommunications and display technologies.
