China’s AI Chip Score Leads South Korea, 91% to 85%

By Tom Whitfield

China scored 91% against South Korea’s 85% in high-performance, low-power AI semiconductor technology in a 2024 South Korean national assessment. The same index put the time needed to reach the U.S. leader at 0.9 years for China and 1.5 years for South Korea.

Where does China lead?

Rep. Kim Nam-kuk of the Democratic Party of Korea released the data on the 23rd, drawing on the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Institute of S&T Evaluation and Planning, or KISTEP. The framework sets the United States at 100 and compares national technological capability on a relative basis.

• AI semiconductor technology: China 91%, South Korea 85%.
• AI technology gap: China 0.9 years and South Korea 1.5 years, a difference of 0.6 years.
• Overall semiconductor and display technology: China 91.5%, South Korea 91.2%, a 0.3-point Chinese lead. Their respective 2022 scores were 84.4% and 89%.

South Korea’s AI score rose from 80% in 2022 to 85% in 2024, while China advanced from 90% to 91%. However, the assessed technologies and evaluation framework changed between the two rounds, so year-on-year comparisons require caution. On this index, China holds a six-point lead in AI semiconductor technology and a 0.6-year advantage in reaching the U.S. level.

Has South Korea caught China in memory?

Both countries stood at 95% of the U.S. level in high-density and resistance-based memory technology as of 2024. The framework treats these technologies as core to higher memory capacity and lower power consumption.

The technology gap, defined as the time needed to reach the leading U.S. level, was 0.5 years for China and 0.6 years for South Korea. That difference was only 0.1 years.

Technology levels and gaps are separate expert-assessment indicators, so identical levels do not establish equal product performance or mass-production competitiveness. The memory scores show national-level parity in the index, not a confirmed commercial tie.

What does the HBM market say?

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix hold the upper hand in the global high-bandwidth memory market. That company-level position can coexist with China’s higher national AI score because the index evaluates national capability rather than the competitiveness of specific products.

Rep. Kim tied Seoul’s timetable to Chinese competition. He said: “Even as Chinese DRAM companies such as CXMT accelerate technology development and mass-production catch-up based on massive state investment, our government’s major large-scale R&D projects are structured to begin in earnest only in 2027.”

Kim also described the memory-semiconductor advantage as an economic threat and said AI semiconductors had already been ceded to China. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix therefore retain a present HBM advantage, but it does not erase the measured gap in next-generation AI technology.

Can Seoul move faster?

Several major government R&D programs are scheduled to begin in earnest in 2027. Two carry disclosed budgets:

• The 1.0638 trillion won, approximately $802.5 million, “Ultra-fine Stacked Semiconductor Technology Development” program.
• The 90 billion won, approximately $67.9 million, “Next-generation Compound Semiconductor Core Technology Development” program.

The government says it is implementing its roadmap in stages. The ministry created the semiconductor future technology roadmap in 2023 and added 14 core technologies in 2024, expanding the total to 59. The 2026 structure contains 50 core and 90 detailed element technologies across 10 groups in devices, design and processes.

Roadmap-linked projects have already started on a staged schedule. Their launch sequence is:

• 2024: Three projects began, including core technology development for advanced semiconductor packaging.
• 2025: Two projects began, including next-generation optical packaging technology development.
• 2026: Three projects are scheduled to launch, covering automotive semiconductors, advanced ceramic materials and light-based computing semiconductors.

The sequence puts narrower programs ahead of the two largest 2027 efforts, but earlier work still spans packaging, automotive semiconductors, advanced ceramics and light-based computing. Kim called for the government, industry and academia to work together immediately, with early R&D budget execution, training tailored to industry needs and sweeping deregulation. He then said: “It is urgent to launch a pan-national support system to safeguard semiconductor sovereignty.”

With China using state-backed investment to accelerate DRAM catch-up and South Korea’s major programs starting in earnest in 2027, the next two to three years could prove decisive for the technology gap and HBM competition.