Deep Mind's Alpha Star defeats Starcraft Pros

It happened, and earlier than expected.  AlphaStar, the latest iteration of Alphabet's DeepMind last month defeated some of the world's best professional players of StarCraft.  As readers of this blog will know, (check out my earlier posts) this development holds particular significance in South Korea, where StarCraft became the world's first massively popular multiplayer online game and influenced the introduction of this nation's world-leading broadband networks.  Furthermore, the 2016 defeat of world champion Lee Se Dol by DeepMind's AlphaGo had sent shockwaves through Korea's public, industry and policymakers about the future of artificial intelligence (AI). 

Semiconductor shock?

Interesting article in the Korea Times on what it calls "semiconductor shock."  This has been more widely reported this week in the Korean press. To understand the percentages in the accompanying graphic, I recommend reading of the article.

Semiconductor super cycle to end in 2019

As reported in the Korea Joongang Daily, industry sources are reporting that the semiconductor super-cycle that sustained Korea's exports during 2017 and 2018 will likely come to an end this year (2019).  The article contains some interesting details, including the following. (click on graphic at left for a full size version)

• "Last year, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix enjoyed-record breaking performances. The combined DRAM market share for the two companies as of end of the third quarter was 73.5 percent. Samsung Electronics currently holds the No. 1 spot in the global market with a share of 43.6 percent, while SK Hynix has 29.9 percent of the market. Micron Technology is in third with 21.6 percent."
•  "The outlook for the three main markets for semiconductors - smartphones, computers and data centers - is negative.
  It is estimated that last year 1.44 billion smartphones were shipped. If that number holds and is not revised, 2018 would be the first year since 2007 - the year of the iPhone’s introduction - in which the market has contracted."