Micron Technology, the world's third-largest memory semiconductor corporation based in the U.S., has inaugurated its third office in Taichung, Taiwan, and plans to hire about 2,000 new employees. To strengthen its competitive edge in advanced DRAM and high bandwidth memory (HBM) technology, Micron is reportedly recruiting not only local Taiwanese talent but also engineers from competitors such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
On the 27th (local time), Taiwan's Commercial Times reported that Micron Technology Taiwan, which employs 11,000 staff, has begun a recruitment campaign and is expected to hire more than 2,000 employees in Taiwan within 12 months. Micron’s largest DRAM production base is located in the Taichung region of Taiwan, where HBM is also manufactured. To catch up with competitors like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, Micron is assumed to be focusing on talent acquisition alongside the construction of its third office.
Micron has reportedly been conducting career recruitment for domestic semiconductor engineers, including those from competing corporations such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, at hotels in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province. Additionally, earlier this month, it held recruitment information sessions at certain universities in South Korea, including Seoul City University, Busan University, and Kyungpook National University, under the condition of 'same-day hiring' for pre-registered applicants. The primary targets were prospective graduates in engineering fields and recent master's and doctoral graduates, covering over 10 job roles, including process, quality, equipment, installation, and production engineers.
Yu Hae-joon, a professor at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology's Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, noted, "It is well known that Micron has steadily recruited engineers from Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix to enhance its technological capabilities. This year, as Samsung Electronics underwent staffing changes resulting in many engineers leaving the company, it is expected that Micron will see a significant number of job transfers. If the process and development technologies of domestic memory semiconductor corporations are transferred, it could pose a significant threat."
With the opening of its third office, Micron plans to enhance its production capacity through process transitions to catch up with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix in the advanced DRAM market. In response to signs of weakening demand in the general memory business due to a low-price offensive from companies like China's CXMT, Micron aims to aggressively target the advanced DRAM market, particularly for server DRAM, where demand is expanding around artificial intelligence (AI).
Rue Dong-hwi, Micron's representative in Taiwan, stated at the opening ceremony of the third office on the 25th, "Micron has invested 1 trillion New Taiwan dollars (approximately 44.8 trillion won) to strengthen its DRAM technology competitiveness and expand production capacity. The 10-nanometer 5th generation (1b) DRAM has entered mass production, and the 10-nanometer 6th generation (1γ) DRAM using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography technology is scheduled for mass production in the first half of next year." He added that as the 10-nanometer advanced DRAM processes evolve, they incorporate more advanced processes that reduce size while improving performance and energy efficiency. Currently, Micron, Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix are competing in the market with 1a and 1b DRAM as their main products.
Micron also plans to expand its HBM production capacity. Micron has previously set a goal to increase its market share by about three times next year. According to market research firm TrendForce, Micron's market share in the HBM sector was 9% last year, significantly trailing behind SK Hynix at 53% and Samsung Electronics at 38%. However, Micron is evaluated to have a technological edge over Samsung Electronics as it supplied the 5th generation HBM (HBM3E) to NVIDIA ahead of Samsung. Micron is expected to achieve a production capacity of 60,000 HBM units annually next year.