Samsung Electro-Mechanics glass core (Samsung Electro-Mechanics) Samsung Electro-Mechanics will set up a 480 billion won ($310 million) joint venture with a Sumitomo Chemical Group unit to produce glass cores, a key material for next-generation semiconductor substrates used in advanced chip packaging.The Korean components maker said Thursday it signed a final agreement with Dongwoo Fine-Chem, a wholly owned subsidiary of Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Co., to establish the venture, tentatively named GlaSSEM.Samsung Electro-Mechanics will hold a 66.2 percent stake after acquiring 63.82 million shares for 319.1 billion won, according to a regulatory filing. The share purchase is scheduled for Sept. 1. Dongwoo Fine-Chem will own the remaining stake.“The joint venture is a strategic decision to preemptively secure core competitiveness in glass cores,” Samsung Electro-Mechanics CEO Chang Duck-hyun said. “We will maximize the synergy between the two companies and lead the paradigm shift in the next-generation semiconductor substrate market.”Sumitomo Chemical Co. Chairman Keiichi Iwata said the partnership would strengthen both companies’ competitiveness in advanced semiconductor materials and support long-term technology cooperation.The new company will be based at Dongwoo Fine-Chem’s plant in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province. The partners plan to complete the establishment of the company by the end of this year and begin full-scale operations in the second half of 2027 after installing production equipment, stabilizing processes and completing quality checks.Glass cores are a key material for glass substrates, which are emerging as a potential game changer in advanced semiconductor packaging. Compared with conventional plastic-based organic substrates, glass substrates offer lower thermal expansion and better flatness, making them more suitable for larger, more densely integrated chip packages.Demand is expected to grow as artificial intelligence servers and high-performance computing chips require larger packages and finer circuitry. Samsung Electro-Mechanics said the venture will help secure a stable supply of glass cores and strengthen its position in next-generation package substrates.The company said it aims to combine its semiconductor substrate design and manufacturing capabilities with Sumitomo Chemical Group’s materials technology and Dongwoo Fine-Chem’s production infrastructure.