Google fires Korea executives after failing to secure AI chip suppliesGoogle fired senior procurement executives in Korea after they failed to secure long-term supply agreements for high-bandwidth memory chips, with Microsoft and Meta also stationing purchasing teams in South Korea amid an intensifying AI chip shortage.Only three companies worldwide—SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics, and Micron —can produce advanced HBM and high-performance DRAM, and both Korean manufacturers have sold out their entire production capacity through 2026.The crisis has prompted tech giants to relocate procurement roles from Silicon Valley to Asian manufacturing hubs and place open-ended orders "regardless of price," with industry sources warning that advanced production lines are running at full capacity and cannot meet all demands.Read more

Google fires Korea executives after failing to secure AI chip supplies

Google fired senior procurement executives in Korea after they failed to secure long-term supply agreements for high-bandwidth memory chips, with Microsoft and Meta also stationing purchasing teams in South Korea amid an intensifying AI chip shortage.

Only three companies worldwide—SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics, and Micron —can produce advanced HBM and high-performance DRAM, and both Korean manufacturers have sold out their entire production capacity through 2026.

The crisis has prompted tech giants to relocate procurement roles from Silicon Valley to Asian manufacturing hubs and place open-ended orders "regardless of price," with industry sources warning that advanced production lines are running at full capacity and cannot meet all demands.

Read more