Industry Odisha Bureau, Aug 20: Samsung Electronics has raised prices for advanced semiconductor manufacturing services by fifteen percent. The increase reflects artificial intelligence demand straining global advanced semiconductor manufacturing capacity. This affects Samsung’s 4nm, 5nm and 8nm processes, potentially strengthening the company’s foundry position.
Customers in China and the United States are facing the steepest increases reported. Some prices for these customers have risen between ten and fifteen percent respectively. Taiwan-based customers have experienced smaller increases ranging from five to ten percent.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company controls approximately 73% of the pure-play foundry market globally. Samsung Foundry holds only approximately 7% of the same market as of Q1 2026. With TSMC’s leading-edge capacity heavily booked, customers increasingly consider Samsung as an alternative.
Samsung’s SF4 line at its Pyeongtaek facility has reportedly operated at full capacity. The company is reserving manufacturing capacity for its own semiconductor products and systems. Those products include high-bandwidth memory components essential for artificial intelligence infrastructure applications.
Chinese semiconductor companies face particularly steep price increases from Samsung’s foundry pricing changes. United States restrictions on advanced chipmaking equipment have limited their domestic manufacturing capabilities. This constraint has increased Chinese companies’ reliance on overseas foundry services substantially.
Samsung Foundry’s profitability has remained under pressure since 2022 due to intense competition. However, higher prices combined with stronger utilisation could accelerate the division’s recovery. Analysts believe improved production yields could also support foundry profitability gains significantly.
Samsung and Broadcom recently announced collaboration spanning memory, foundry and advanced packaging. The companies expect more than 200 billion dollars of combined business through 2030. Samsung has developed or pursued chipmaking relationships involving Tesla, Apple, Nvidia and Google.
The pricing development reflects a fundamental shift in global semiconductor market power dynamics. Artificial intelligence demand is increasingly giving semiconductor manufacturers greater leverage in pricing negotiations. This redistribution may reshape how semiconductor capacity and pricing power function globally.
