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Yashica Vashishtha

Yashica is a Software Engineer turned Content Writer, who loves to write on social causes and expertise in writing technical stuff. She loves to watch movies and explore new places. She believes that you need to live once before you die. So experimenting with her life and career choices, she is trying to live her life to the fullest.

Sopra Steria

Sopra Steria: The Major French Software Consulting Service Company.

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Sopra Steria Group is a France-based software consulting service company, with its service offices established in different parts of the world. With 50 plus years of experience, Sopra Steria has been offering its in-depth knowledge to companies that require software solutions for their growth. The company follows the motto of “Delivering Transformation Together” and has been making means of IT to offer its customers the best possible services. It is known for its IT consulting and management service along with its banking and HR software solutions.

A Brief Introduction

Sopra Steria is a management consulting and software solution firm that deals in three major categories; Sopra Steria Consulting, Sopra Banking Software, and Sopra HR software. The company has clients all over the world and has established dedicated offices in different parts of the globe to assist its international clients better. As of 2020, the recorded company revenue was €4.262 billion. The total number of employees working globally for the company is 46,000. The company’s headquarter is located in Paris, France.

The Foundational Story of Sopra Steria

Sopra Steria is a resultant of the merger of two big IT companies, Sopra and Steria. The merger took place in 2014, before that, Sopra was an independent IT service company founded in 1968. On the other hand, Steria also came into being in 1969, a year after Sopra.

After its inception in 1972, Sopra came with its first banking platform. Eventually, the platform became very popular and helped Sopra make its name in the IT service industry. In 1986, the company won a contract from the French Ministry of the Interior for another major IT project. In 1990, the company was listed on the Paris stock exchange. In the next ten years, Sopra started to expand to other countries, including the U.K., Germany, Italy, and Spain. During the same time, Sopra introduced its new and powerful management software known as EVOLAN suite.

Sopra Steria
Image Source: consultancy.uk

Starting from 2000, the company went on to acquire some of the consulting firms based in different countries to expand its operations. These firms include names like Orga Consultants, Inforsud Ingénierie, Viewlocity, Cyclone Commerce, and Tumbleweed Communications, etc. In 2005, Sopra established its various centers in Europe and India. In the year 2014, Sopra partnered with La Banque Postale to build a new revamped banking software.

The Back History of Steria

Steria as mentioned before was founded a year after Sopra. The company introduced its first software a text processing system in 1973, to enable Agence France-Presse to computerize its all operations. By the year 1981, the company had launched some other software as well including Minitel. With Steria’s automation project, the company entered into the transport and mobility industry in 1987.

In 1994, Steria created a banking system for the French banks to carry out interbank payments. The company entered the Indian market after it acquired the IIS Infotech based in Delhi in 1997. In 1999, Steria went public on the Paris stock exchange. The year 2000 onwards were great for the company as it acquired a few major consulting businesses in France, including Experian, Tecsi, Equip. Its international acquisitions of that time include Mummert Consulting, Newell & Budge, Xansa, and PROFit. Steria, in 2007, won the biggest national project from the French Ministry of Finance.

The Merger

On 8 April 2014, Sopra and Steria announced that they have come together to form the Sopra Steria Group. The two announced that both have joined their hands as they intend to become the European leader in digital services. The merger was completed on 31 December 2014. The deal was the exchange of one Sopra share for four Steria shares, and the group ultimately was called the Sopra Steria Group.

The CEO: Vincent Paris

Vincent Paris is serving as the CEO of Sopra Steria Group. He has a long history with the Sopra Group, as he joined the Sopra Group in 1987, soon after he graduated from the prestigious École Polytechnique. Since then, Paris has served the company in several different leadership positions. Before becoming the CEO of Sopra Steria Group, he handled the important posts of Director of French operations and Deputy CEO of Sopra. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the company for the past ten years.

ROHM

ROHM: The Resistor Pioneer and Leader of the Semiconductor Industry.

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ROHM is a well-known semiconductor industry leader with its roots in Japan. The company started its journey by registering its first patent for a breakthrough utility model called a ‘parallel lead-type fixed resistor’ in 1958, and today it is credited for hundreds of such patents. The company has covered a huge gap so far, and presently, it is one of the major manufacturers and marketers of semiconductor products. Today, the company is expanded to most of the major countries in the world, and as of 2017, 21,308 employees are working for the company globally.

Establishment of ROHM

Initially, ROHM Semiconductors started as Toyo Electronics Industry Corporation, a small electronic parts manufacturing company, in 1958. The company was founded by Kenichiro Sato in Japan. Toyo Electronics was into manufacturing resistors, transistors, and other electronic equipment.

In 1962, ROHM started to manufacture the automatic resistor assembly machine in-house, and the next year, it started to market and develop metal-firm resistors. In 1966, the company was rebranded as ROHM Wako Co., Ltd. With the new name, the company started to manufacture transistors and switching diode, and by the end of the 60s, it also began to work on ICs. The company established its other divisions, including ROHM Apollo Co., Ltd., and ROHM Logistec Co., Ltd., to focus on the new technologies coming.

In 1970, ROHM became the first company in Japan to establish a subsidiary in the U.S. The company started its sales office and an IC design center in Silicon Valley. The said center became the place for the company where it was doing the research work and was developing the ICs. After this expansion, ROHM also entered Asian countries like South Korea, Hong Kong and established ROHM Electronics Asia Pte. Ltd. ROHM also began to invest in LEDs, square-plante chip resistors, rectifying diodes, and network resistors in the same decade.

ROHM
Image Source: upload.wikimedia.org

In 1981, the name of the company was officially changed from Toyo Electronics Industry Corporation to ROHM Co., Ltd. The company also published the “Asian Music”, where it recorded tapes of all volumes. In 1983, the company was listed on the Osaka Security Exchange for the first time. The arrival of Zener diodes and digital transistors in the mid-80s provided ROHM to explore new opportunities.

ROHM became the first company in the world to successfully complete its experiments using the laser diodes with MBE methodology, in 1984. The next year, the company developed its first 4-bit and 8-bit microcontrollers using original CPUs. In 1986, the company listed on the First Section of the Osaka Stock Exchange, and in 1989, it was listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. It also established the Research and Development Center in 1986. By this time, the company was working on new memory ICs, capacitors as well as liquid crystal process technology. It also established a manufacturing plant in Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, the U.K., and Taiwan by the end of the decade.

Growth of the Company

In 1991, the company launched the ROHM Music Foundation. In the next two years, the company was making and marketing the large size LCD public displays and had obtained the ISO9001 certification. In 1995, ROHM partnered with Zycad Corporation of the United States to develop a 100,000 gate FPGA using flash technology. The company opened the VLSI Research Center in 1998. The same year, ROHM started to develop the Dual-Cell system EEPROM and highly reliable Schottky barrier diodes. In 1999, ROHM established its technology centers in Kyoto and Hong Kong. It also started to develop ICs for mobile phones in the same year.

In 2000, ROHM came with a revolutionary concept in system LSI design technology, named REAL SOCKET™, and established the Europe Technology Center. In 2003, the company brought a new platform design environment for the system LSI, naming it the REAL PLATFORM, and in 2006, the company developed the ultra-compact LED “PICOLEDTM. It introduced the world’s first IEEE802.1X-compatible baseband IC for wireless LAN applications in 2007.

In 2010, ROHM introduced the world’s first laser diode to control the beam direction. The next year, the company entered the Indian and the Brazilian markets. In 2012, ROHM was mass-producing the full SiC power modules, LDO regulators, the world’s smallest transistor package, and the industry’s first SiC MOS module with no Schottky barrier diode. In 2013, ROHM partnered with Intel to build a low power consumption power management IC to be used in Intel’s next-generation Atom™ processors.

In the next five years, ROHM developed the industry’s smallest transistors, the first Wi-SUN-compatible universal wireless communication module, the world’s first automotive LDO regulators, and the world’s first trench-type SiC MOSFET.

The Founder: Kenichiro Sato

ROHM was founded by Kenichiro Sato in 1958 in Japan. Sato was born in Tokyo and completed his education at Ritsumeikan University. During his studies, he got to know about resistors and decided to start a resistor manufacturing company. So, he founded the company as Toyo Denki Seisakusho in Kyoto in 1958, while he was still a student.

Apart from making resistors and transistors, Sato was fond of music and was a trained pianist. He even established a music school in 1991 to promote classical music. Sato died at the age of 88 in 2020 after suffering from a long-going illness.

The CEO: Isao Matsumoto

Isao Matsumoto is the serving President and Chief Executive Officer of ROHM as of 2020. Matsumoto had joined the company in 1985 and has been working in different positions and roles for the past 35 years. Before becoming the CEO, he was working as the Director and the Managing Executive Officer of ROHM. He has also been a member of the ROHM board for past many years.

Vivo

Vivo: The Dominators of Global Affordable Smartphone Industry

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The smartphone is one of the most innovative discoveries of humankind. It won’t be wrong if we call a smartphone a mini-computer, as it can do almost everything a computer can do. Today, from entertainment to business and from connecting with people to studying online, everything is possible through this small and handy gadget. Though smartphones could only be a thing for the Rich, due the companies like Vivo, people from every category have been able to get their hands on them. The company is known for its feature-rich yet affordable smartphones and is one of the most loved smartphone manufacturing companies across the globe.

A Brief Introduction

Vivo is a Chinese Android smartphone manufacturing company that is a subsidiary of BBK Electronics and was founded by Shen Wei in 2009. It is the sister company of Oppo and OnePlus. The company’s headquarter is located in Dongguan, Guangdong, and it is one of the leading smartphone companies in the world that manufactures affordable to mid-range smartphones. Apart from smartphones, Vivo also is the mass producer of smartphone accessories, software, and online services. Vivo’s mobile applications are widely available on its dedicated V-Appstore, and its smartphones also run on the Funtouch OS.

The Back Story of Vivo

Vivo, as mentioned earlier, is a subsidiary of BBK electronics, which came into being with the emergence of smartphone technology around the world in 2009. The company continued to serve its Chinese audience for around 3-4 years of its founding, and in 2014, by entering Thailand for the first time, it started to expand overseas. The company offered innovative designs and features incorporated into its smartphones that made Vivo smartphones quite popular among its global audience in no time.

Vivo
Image Source: ohsem.me

By 2015, the company had reached major Asian countries like India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, and Vietnam, etc. The same year, Vivo had sold 45 million units of smartphones worldwide, whereas it was producing 60 million pieces annually. In the year 2017, Vivo also started its expansion in the European countries starting from Russia.

Vivo is credited for bringing the first slimmest smartphone in 2014 and also for becoming the first smartphone company to incorporate a Hi-Fi chip into a smartphone (the Vivo X1) in 2012. The company also entered the U.S. market with the brand name BLU. In 2019, the company had become the second-best smartphone company in India. Apart from smartphone manufacturing, the company is also one of the sponsors of the Indian Premier League (IPL), UEFA, India’s Pro Kabaddi, and FIFA.

The Key People at Vivo

Shen Wei is credited as the founder of Vivo, who is also the disciple of the founder of BBK Electronics, Duan Yongping. From the time of the founding of Vivo, Wei has been serving the company as its CEO as well as the President. Before serving as the CEO of Vivo, Shen was working for BBK Electronics. According to Duan, it was never his plan to start a dedicated smartphone company, but after the demand for affordable smartphones started, BBK had to enter the competition. Today, BBK trades as the smartphone seller with its subsidiaries Vivo, Realme, OnePlus, and Oppo.

The Company Today

Vivo has its dedicated R&D centers established in Dongguan, Chongqing, Shenzhen, and Nanjing, and around 3,000 engineers are working at those centers. Apart from that,  around 10,000 employees are serving the company globally and till now, Vivo is actively providing its services in over 100 countries. Vivo has continued to follow its ritual to introduce new smartphone models every year, such that it remains relevant in the changing smartphone market. The company with its innovation grown to become a leading name in the smartphone industry and is one major contributor to the growth of its parent company BBK Electronics, too.

HMD Nokia

HMD Launches Nokia’s Six Affordable and Premium C, G, and X Series Smartphones.

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After the big ban on Chinese products from many countries, HMD, the Nokia-branded smartphone maker, is trying to dominate the smartphone industry through its new affordable smartphone lineup. The company launched six smartphones under its three different series, i.e., C, G, and X. Each series has introduced two smartphones, named as Nokia C10, Nokia C20, Nokia G10, Nokia G20, Nokia X10, and Nokia X20. HMD launched the smartphone on Thursday, April 8.

Nokia C10 and C20 Specifications

The two smartphones from the Nokia C series have got all similar features. The major difference between the two is the processor used in both. The Nokia C10 is powered by a quad-core Unisoc SC7331e SoC, whereas Nokia C20 is packed with an octa-core Unisoc SC9863a SoC. Both support 2GB of RAM. Storage-wise, C20 has got two options, i.e., 16GB and 32GB, along with the support for expansion up to 256GB via a microSD card. The Nokia C10 smartphone comes with an inbuilt storage of 32GB, which can be expanded up to 256GB.

Nokia C10 and C20 include a 6.51-inch HD+ (720×1,600 pixels) display, rendering a 20:9 aspect ratio and 400 nits of peak brightness. The display is protected with a 2D Panda Glass. Both have a single 5MP camera on the front as well as rear, along with a flashlight on both sides. Nokia C10 and C20 are 4G smartphones and offer Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth v4.2, connectivity features. Both the smartphones include a 3,000mAh battery supporting 10W charging and weigh around 191 grams, with dimensions equal to 169.9×77.9×8.8mm. These two smartphones run on Android 11 (Go edition).

HMD Nokia
Image Source: engadget.com

Nokia G10 and G20 Specifications

The HMD Nokia G10 and G20 are more powerful smartphones than the C-series phones. These two run on Android 11 and have a similar build, except for the camera and the processor. The Nokia G10 smartphone is powered by the octa-core MediaTek Helio G25 SoC, whereas the G20 smartphone includes the octa-core MediaTek Helio G35 SoC processor. Both come with 4GB RAM. The Nokia G10 comes in 32GB and 64GB variants, whereas the G20 comes in 64GB and 128GB onboard storage options. Both smartphones have got dedicated SD slot for storage expansion up to 512GB.

Nokia G10 is packed with a triple rear camera setup, having a 13MP primary sensor, a 2MP macro shooter, and a 2MP depth sensor. On the other hand, the G20 smartphone boasts a quad-camera setup, including a 48MP primary sensor, a 5MP ultra-wide shooter, a 2MP macro shooter, and a 2MP depth sensor. Both smartphones include an 8MP front camera. The Nokia G10 and G20 have got a 6.5-inch HD+ (720×1,600 pixels) display, providing a 20:9 aspect ratio. The size of both the smartphone is also equal, i.e. 164.9×76.0x9.2mm, and both weigh around 194 grams. The Nokia G10 includes a 5,000mAh battery with 10W charging, and the G20 smartphones come with a 5,050mAh battery with 10W charging.

Nokia X10 and X20 Specifications

The Nokia X10 and X20 are the most powerful smartphones of them all, having better camera setups and a more powerful processor. Display-wise, both have the 6.67-inch full-HD+ (1,080×2,400 pixels) hole-punch display rendering a 20:9 aspect ratio and 450 nits of peak brightness. Both the smartphones are shipped with an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 SoC and provide support for up to 8GB of RAM.

The Nokia X10 and X20 have got a quad-camera setup on the rear. The X10 has got a 48MP primary sensor, a 5MP ultra-wide-angle shooter, a 2MP depth sensor, and a 2MP macro shooter. On the other hand, the Nokia X20 includes a 64MP primary sensor, a 5MP ultra-wide shooter, a 2MP depth sensor, and a 2MP macro shooter. The camera setups of both the smartphones feature the Zeiss optics and OZO Audio. The front camera of the Nokia X10 is an 8MP camera, and the Nokia X20 features a 32MP selfie camera.

The HMD Nokia X10 comes in the 64GB and 128GB variants, and the storage can be extended up to 512GB using an SD card, whereas the Nokia X20 is packed with 128GB of onboard storage with expansion ability up to 512GB. Both the smartphones provide support for 5G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth v5.0 connectivity. The dimensions of the two measures 168.94×79.7×9.1mm and both weigh around 210-220 grams. Both Nokia X10 and X20 come with a 4,470mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging. Also, both are IP52-rated dust and water resistance smartphones.

Price and Availability

Nokia C10 and C20 are on the affordable side. The Nokia C10 costs around EUR 79 (about Rs. 7,000) for its base model and the Nokia C20 starts at EUR 89 (around Rs. 7,900). Both the smartphones will be shipped starting from June this year to some selected markets. The Nokia C10 comes in Grey and Light Purple color options, and the Nokia C20 is available in Dark Blue and Sand colors.

The base model of the Nokia G10 starts at EUR 139 (around Rs. 12,300), whereas the starting price for the Nokia G20 price is set at EUR 159 (around Rs. 14,000). The availability of the Nokia G10 starts from April this year and will be available in two colors, i.e., Dusk and Nightshades. HMD will start shipping the Nokia G20 in May in Glacier and Night color options.

The Nokia X10 starts at EUR 309 (around Rs. 27,400), and the Nokia X20 will be available at starting price of EUR 349 (around Rs. 31,000). Nokia X10 will be available in the selected market starting from June and will have Forest and Snow color options. On the other hand, the Nokia X20 will be out in the market starting from May in Nordic Blue and Sun color variants.

Dell G15

Dell Releases its G15 Laptop Globally, Along with the Dell G15 Ryzen Edition & Dell Alienware.

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Last month, Dell launched its gaming laptop Dell G15 in China, and on Wednesday 7th April, the company launched the same laptop globally, along with other two new gaming laptops named G15 Ryzen Edition and the Dell Alienware M15 Ryzen Edition R5. The company has also launched new gaming monitors under its Spring 2021 lineup.

Dell G15 and G15 Ryzen Edition

The Dell G15 and G15 Ryzen edition has a similar look and feel, but their processors are quite different. The Dell G15 is mounted with the 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor, whereas the Dell G15 Ryzen Edition is shipped with an AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor.

There are two variants for the screen choices in Dell G15 and the G15 Ryzen edition. The 15.6-inch display of both the laptops is a full-HD (1,920x 1,080 pixels) LED-backlit display and provides options of having a 120Hz refresh rate and 250 nits of peak brightness or a 165Hz refresh rate and 300 nits of peak brightness. There are two options of batteries for both the laptops, the 56Whr or the 86Whr battery.

Dell G15
Image Source: theverge.com

Graphics-wise also, there are options in the Dell G15. The machine can be packed with Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 (paired with 4GB of GDDR6 RAM) or the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 (paired with 6GB of GDDR6 RAM). For Dell G15 Ryzen Edition, the company has provided only one option, i.e., Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 graphics card with 6GB of GDDR6 RAM.

The two laptops support 256GB of PCIe NVMeM.2 SSD storage that can be extended up to 2TB of PCIe NVMeM.2 SSD storage. The Dell G15 has got support for up to 32GB (2,933MHz) DDR4 RAM, whereas the Ryzen one is shipped with up to 32GB (3,200MHz) of DDR4 RAM support. The keyboards for the laptops are spill-proof full-size keyboards with a numeric keypad. These can also be upgraded to 4-zone RGB backlit keyboards.

Other than these specifications, the G15 and G15 Ryzen Edition laptops provide support for Wi-Fi 6, HDMI 2.1 port, a USB 3.2 port, two USB 2.0 Gen 1 Type-A ports, a 3.5mm headphone/ mic jack. It also includes two-tune Nahimic 3D Audio speakers and a 720p webcam with a dual-array digital microphone.

The Dell G15 has three color options, i.e., Dark Shadow Grey, Phantom Grey, and Specter Green, whereas the Ryzen Edition of the same laptop will come only in two shares, i.e., Phantom Grey and Specter Green color.

Dell Alienware M15 Ryzen Edition R5

The Dell Alienware M15 Ryzen Edition R5 laptop is a more powerful laptop than the other two. It is powered by up to an AMD Ryzen 9 5800HX processor. It is shipped with a 15.6-inch QHD (2,560×1,440 pixels) display supporting a 240Hz refresh rate and 400 nits of peak brightness. The laptop has two variants for the graphics, i.e., GeForce RTX 3060 and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070, and supports up to 32GB of DDR4 (3,200MHz) RAM. The storage support of the laptop is up to 4TB (2x 2TB) of PCIe M.2 SSD.

The R5 laptop is shipped with an 86Whr battery and a Cherry MX ultra-low-profile mechanical keyboard having the per-key AlienFX customizable lighting. The laptop includes an HD 720p webcam with dual-array microphones and provides support for Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2. Like its other two companion laptops, the Alienware laptop consists of an ethernet port, two USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports, two USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, and a 3.5mm mic/headphone jack.

The Dell Gaming Monitors

Dell has launched four gaming monitors, including Dell 25, 27, 32, 34 gaming monitors. All four comes in different screen sizes. The Dell 25 variants have got a 24.5-inch full-HD IPS to display with a 240Hz refresh rate and 99 percent sRGB color coverage. The Dell 27 and 32 monitors have curved screens and are 27-inch and 32-inch in size, respectively. Both have the QHD VA displays offering a 165Hz refresh rate and 99 percent sRGB color coverage, along with a 3000:1 contrast ratio.

The Dell 34 is also a curved Gaming Monitor with a 34-inch WQHD display offering a 144Hz refresh rate and 90 percent DCI-P3 color coverage along with a 3000:1 contrast ratio. The Dell 27, 32, and 34 monitors have a 1ms (MPRT)/2ms GtG (Gray-to-Gray) response time and feature AMD FreeSync. All three come with ultra-thin bezels and have vents for heat dispensation on the back.

Pricing and Availability

 The Dell G15 is already out in the China market and is priced at $899 (around Rs. 67,000) for the base variant. After China, it will be available in the Global market starting from April 13. The Dell G15 Ryzen Edition laptop will cost $899 (around Rs. 67,000) for its base variant and will arrive in the Chinese market on April 30 and in the global market on May 4.

The Dell Alienware M15 is a more powerful laptop than the other two, so it is on the more expensive side. It will cost $1,793 (around  Rs. 1.3 lakhs) for the base variant and is already available in China starting from April 7. The laptop will reach the U.S. market on April 20, and on May 4, it will be available all around the world.

The company has not revealed the prices of its gaming monitors, but the available dates are already out. All four Gaming Monitor will be out in the Chinese market starting from May 7, and the global release of Dell 27 and the Dell 32 will be from June 22. The Dell 25 Gaming Monitor, and the Dell 34 Curved Gaming Monitor, will be available in North America, Europe, Middle East, and Africa on May 27, and for the rest of the countries, these two will accompany the other two monitors on June 22.

SK Hynix

SK Hynix: The Second-largest Memory Chipmaker in the World

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South Korea is known for its innovative and advanced technologies. There are several companies from South Korea making big in the technology industry. SK Hynix of South Korea is the third-largest semiconductor company and the second-largest chipmaker in the world. The company, with its innovation, has given the world multiple discoveries in the field of semiconductor and memory chips.

A Brief Introduction

SK Hynix is the world’s largest provider of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) and flashes memory chips. The company headquarters in Icheon, South Korea, and its worldwide customer list includes Apple, HP Inc., Dell, etc. Hynix’s memory products are used in DVD players, mobile phones, set-top boxes, networking equipment, hard disk drives, etc. The company has its manufacturing units in various countries, including the US, Taiwan, and China. As of 2016, 22,254 are working at Hynix, and the total recorded revenue of the company as of 2018 was US$35.27 billion.

History and Formation of SK Hynix

Though the company was founded on 1 October 1949, it became famous only after it was rebranded in 1983. The company started its journey as Gukdo in 1949 and got a new name, i.e., Hyundai Electronics Industries Co. Ltd. in 1983. There was mass production of 256K DRAM in the company, and it also started to produce the Multifunctional Phone LX-2 in 1985. The company partnered with IBM to establish a PC sales agency and entered the US with the establishment of the US corporation (HEA).

In 1986, other than its B2B clients, Hyundai started to focus on B2C clients through its Hyundai Blue Chip PC. The company was manufacturing the car radios, developed CMOS type 256K EPROM, and also started the production of a key phone-based private switchboard, PABXHX50. The company developed the 4th generation switchboard HX-400 in 1987 and partnered with MOS Electronic Co. to develop the 256K SRAM. It also launched a satellite broadcasting receiver during the same time. In 1988, Hyundai came with the automatic answering machine and established its European corporation, HEE. At that time, it was at the top in the export of PCs in South Korea.

SK Hynix
Image Source: pulsenews.co.kr

Hyundai became the first company to export PCs to Japan in 1989. It also developed the 256K Fast SRAM in the same year. It was the 20th largest company in the semiconductor market in the world. In 1990, the company was mass-producing cameras and started to export them to the US. Along with that, it established the HEA Semiconductor and Computer R&D Center and also started to develop bps Pagers and 1M DRAM, becoming the first company in Korea to do that.

Hyundai developed the smallest and the lightest mobile phone in South Korea in 1991. The company also entered the Singapore market in the same year by establishing the Singapore corporation (HES) which was into 486 PC production. The next year, the company came with G4 FAX, a private switchboard HNT-832, built-in car audio systems, and completed the construction of FAB 2 B-Line. By the mid-90s, Hyundai had become the major supplier of semiconductor devices, car-audio, telecom products manufacturer, and provider of monitor & terminal category products. The company acquired Maxtor (US HDD manufacturer) and also developed the CD autochanger in 1993.

Hyundai is credited for the development of the world’s first MPEG-2 SAVI decoder chip and the world’s first 256M SRAM. In 1996, Hyundai had its first IPO on the Korea Stock Exchange. It also developed the world’s first Synclink DRAM test product and 1G synchronous DRAM using SOI technology. Hyundai acquired a large stockholder’s share of LG Semiconductor and merged into LG’s LG Electronics division in 1999.

In 2000, there was a spin-off in the company, forming Hyundai Image Quest, Hyundai Autonet, and Hyundai Calibration & Certification Technologies. Hyundai Electronics was rebranded as Hynix Semiconductor Inc. in 2001, after another spin-off from the Hyundai Group. In 2006, Hynix recorded its highest revenues since the formation of the Hyundai Group.

In 2010, Hynix partnered with HP for the development of Next Generation Memory Products, ReRAM. SK Group of South Korea acquired a 21.05% stake in Hynix in 2012, and the company started to operate as SK Hynix. The acquisition has been great for the growth of SK Hynix. 

The CEO: Lee Seok-Hee

SK Hynix CEO
Image Source: kedglobal.com

Lee Seok-Hee is serving as the President and CEO, SK Hynix Inc since 2018. He became a member of the board of the company in 2017. Lee did his graduation and post-graduation from Seoul National University and went for further studies at Stanford University to complete a Ph.D.