South Korea-based tech titan Samsung Electronics Company spent nearly 90 trillion won (USD 59.2 billion) on capital expenditures and research and development (R&D) in 2025, said data compiled by corporate tracker CEO Score.
The figure also made the company the biggest investor among the world’s top 10 semiconductor companies.
Samsung’s investment far exceeded that of second-ranked Taiwanese semiconductor giant TSMC (69.4 trillion won). What makes Samsung’s achievement a significant one is the fact that the company has maintained its upward pace of semiconductor-related investments, despite a sharp earnings decline in 2023.
In 2023, Samsung’s operating profit fell 84.9% on-year to 6.57 trillion won, but the company invested 88.9 trillion won during the period, more than 13 times its operating profit.
As per the industry observers, Samsung’s aggressive spending during the semiconductor downturn helped lay the groundwork for the industry upcycle that began gaining momentum from 2025 onwards.
“Given the nature of the semiconductor industry, which requires continuous investment on an enormous scale, recent debates over distributing tens of trillions of won in bonuses and retained earnings during the current boom cycle could place a significant burden on companies,” CEO Score said.
Samsung Electronics is also in reported discussions with Silicon Valley giant Google in terms of building the latter’s next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) chip.
The chip, codenamed “Icefish,” is being designed as part of Google’s Tensor Processing Unit (TPU) lineup, which powers many of the company’s AI services and cloud offerings. While TSMC is expected to produce the primary computing portion of the processor, Samsung has emerged as the primary contender to manufacture a separate component that connects the chip to memory using its advanced 2-nanometer manufacturing process.
As per the information, the reported arrangement would split production between two of the world’s most advanced chip manufacturers at a time when demand for cutting-edge semiconductors continues to put pressure on industry capacity.
By tapping Samsung, the highest spender among the semiconductor companies, and TSMC, the dominant producer of advanced AI chips, Google wants to create an uninterrupted and reliable supply chain before beginning the production run of its next-generation AI chips.