Samsung Electro-Mechanics Delays Glass Substrate Production to 2028; LG Innotek Eyes Robot Use

Samsung Electro-Mechanics' glass substrate business has hit a setback, with samples failing to pass customer certification and production-line investment now deferred. Because the samples failed reliability assessment, they must be reworked and resubmitted for evaluation, inevitably pushing back the original schedule. It remains uncertain whether production-line investment can begin within 2026.

Equipment orders, initially planned for November 2025, have been postponed multiple times, from December of that year to March 2026 and then June 2026, after which no further schedule has been provided. As of end-July, the orders had yet to be placed and the timeline remains uncertain. Samsung Electro-Mechanics is producing glass substrate samples at its Sejong plant, where supplier selection for key process equipment, including deposition, etching, laser drilling and inspection, has largely been completed.

In early July 2026, Samsung Electro-Mechanics formed a glass substrate joint venture, GlaSSEM, with Dongwoo Fine-Chem, a subsidiary of Japan's Sumitomo Chemical. The venture originally targeted a production start in the second half of 2027, but after the announcement of second-quarter results, the production start was adjusted to 2028. With equipment orders still far from being placed, mass production has been pushed back beyond 2028.

Separately, LG Innotek is considering applying glass substrates to image sensor packaging for humanoid robots. While the company faces near-term challenges in AI server applications due to high heat dissipation and heavy computing loads, robot environments impose less stress on substrates, offering advantages in technology validation and commercialization. LG Innotek plans to build experience in robot and industrial robot applications before expanding into AI server semiconductor packaging.