LG Chem to invest $9.7 billion in R&D for AI-driven materials shift

By Kim Dong-young Posted : June 23, 2026, 10:57 Updated : June 23, 2026, 10:57
LG Chem headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul/ Yonhap
 
SEOUL, June 23 (AJP) - LG Chem will pour 15 trillion won ($9.75 billion) into research and development through 2035 as South Korea's largest chemical maker pivots toward high-value, AI-driven materials.

Chief executive Kim Dong-chun told a town hall meeting on Monday that the company would cultivate semiconductor, mobility and robotics materials, along with cancer drugs, as its core future businesses, sharpening a portfolio long anchored in commodity chemicals.

The strategy comes as global oversupply and intensifying competition erode margins across the traditional petrochemical industry, pushing producers toward faster-growing, higher-margin sectors.

LG Chem aims to reach a double-digit operating margin by 2030.

About 70 percent of the R&D budget will flow to the targeted growth businesses, with the company concentrating on AI-based applications and frontier technologies.

LG Chem said it had set up a new business-development unit reporting directly to the CEO in June and would pursue mergers and acquisitions to accelerate expansion.

In semiconductors, the company plans to deepen its advanced-packaging lineup and grow electronic-materials revenue to 2 trillion won by 2030, while extending its mobility reach into robot structural and precision-bonding materials.

It also intends to strengthen its cancer-drug pipeline through global trials, licensing and partnerships.

"LG Chem will leap forward into a technology-strong converting company," Kim said, vowing to focus capabilities on a growth axis centered on semiconductor, mobility and robotics materials and cancer drugs.

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