[Column] The tyranny of merit and the distribution of profit in the AI era

Samsung’s 600 million won bonus opens a Pandora’s box of inequality

Samsung Electronics awarded semiconductor staff bonuses up to 600M won ($408K)—nearly 14x Korea's average salary. Hyundai, Kakao and HD Hyundai unions are already demanding similar profit-linked bonuses, risking capital diversion from AI chip R&D.