To Ensure Stable Supply of Automotive Chips
LG Electronics will push for internalization of automotive chip development. A shortage of semiconductors for vehicles such as microcontroller units (MCUs) has affected production of automobiles and automobile parts.
The company is promoting MCU development. Its CTO division is hiring engineers with expertise in digital logic design and system-on-chip (SoC). The company is also seeking cooperation with MCU-related companies.
An MCU is a semiconductor that controls various systems in automobiles and various electronic components inside automobiles.
If LG Electronics develops an MCU for vehicles, it will face no disruptions in securing MCUs. The company is operating a car parts business through its VS division, LG Magna ePowertrain, and ZKW.
LG Electronics’ automotive electronics business is still in the red due to a semiconductor shortage. “The spread of COVID-19 in Southeast Asia deepened a shortage of automotive semiconductors in the third quarter, which is expected to continue until the end of the fourth quarter,” an LG Electronics official said in a third quarter earnings conference call.
“We are considering internalizing development of semiconductors for vehicles,” the official said. “We have not yet finalized a specific plan.”