Rebellion, Furiosa AI, and DeepX, regarded as representative players in the domestic artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor industry, are expected to undergo verification on the global stage starting this year. In particular, this year is anticipated to be a critical juncture for the medium- to long-term growth potential of these corporations. Given the weak domestic market characteristic of Korean fabless companies (specialized in semiconductor design), supplying overseas clients is essential, and it is on this basis that additional investments can be attracted.
According to the industry on the 10th, DeepX is busy with full-scale overseas marketing ahead of its first mass production of neural processing units (NPU) this month, while Furiosa AI is also promoting the expansion of sales for its second AI chip, Renegade, which entered mass production in the third quarter of last year. Rebellion has already proven its marketability by generating mass production sales in Israel, the United States, and Saudi Arabia, and is currently preparing for the mass production of its AI semiconductor 'Ri' for large language model (LLM) inference in partnership with Samsung Electronics.
The biggest task currently facing domestic AI fabless companies is attracting investment that can sustain the AI semiconductor business with a medium- to long-term roadmap. Jeong Young-beom, executive director of Furiosa AI, said at a recent National Assembly debate on AI promotion policies, "It would be good to receive investment without necessarily selling, but it is regrettable that we cannot reach the desired scale domestically," adding, "There has been no decision regarding the sale. We are keeping everything open for discussion."
Another insider from the fabless industry noted, "It is a fact that domestic AI semiconductor corporations, including Furiosa AI, are facing a difficult situation," and explained, "Given the nature of the semiconductor business, which requires large-scale investment, failure to secure funding means companies with potential may have no choice but to shut down or sell before they can properly blossom."
In the case of DeepX, it has already secured sufficient funding with cumulative investments exceeding 150 billion won, but the first mass-produced chip, DX-M1, which incurred significant expenses, needs to demonstrate competitiveness in the global market. DeepX is currently conducting active marketing in China, the Middle East, Taiwan, Europe, and the United States, and is particularly attracting attention from numerous global clients in the on-device AI field. DeepX plans to enter the next-generation edge NPU and later the server NPU market, necessitating supply performance and application references.
Supply performance and partnerships in the U.S. market are particularly important. On this day, DeepX recruited Jeon Jae-do, the former marketing director of NXP, to expand its customers and business in the global market. Jeon, head of the U.S. subsidiary, is a veteran who has served in various roles for over 20 years at major global semiconductor and IT corporations, including ST-Ericsson, Texas Instruments, and NXP in the U.S. and Europe. His expertise and extensive network, acquired through experience in hardware design, technology marketing, and sales across mobile, automotive, and home entertainment sectors, are his strengths.
After merging with Sapyon and receiving an additional investment of 20 billion won from Saudi Aramco, Rebellion has achieved a total accumulated investment of 300 billion won and is beginning to supply rack-based products to Aramco's data center, planning to expand the scale of its data center business and establish a subsidiary in Saudi Arabia in the first half of this year. It also plans to complete the release of the next-generation AI semiconductor 'Rebel' by the end of this year, following the AI semiconductor 'Atom.' Sample production is scheduled for June.
Yoon Seong-ro, a professor at Seoul National University's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, stated, "For domestic AI semiconductor corporations to succeed, success in overseas markets is crucial," noting that "bold challenges, such as establishing headquarters abroad or listing on the U.S. Nasdaq, are also important." He further added, "The conditions of the Korean semiconductor startup ecosystem have improved significantly, but there are still many restrictions in the domestic market."