Samsung (005930 SK) has reportedly started looking for new customers for its 5nm process, Chosun reports; negotiations have begun on 2nm process, though are reportedly taking longer than initially expected

Samsung (005930 SK) has reportedly started looking for new customers for its 5nm process, Chosun reports; negotiations have begun on 2nm process, though are reportedly taking longer than initially expected.

Customer solicitation and delayed node negotiations are the classic footprint of a trailing foundry trying to re-fill advanced-node capacity after losing leading-edge orders to the dominant pure-play rival. Episodes of this kind have historically played out in a fixed sequence: yields and ramp schedules slip, anchor customers dual-source or defect entirely, and the laggard then competes on price and availability for second-tier demand, which compresses the margin profile of the foundry segment before any revenue recovery shows. The distinction worth drawing is between the 5nm customer search, which is a utilisation and pricing story on an already-qualified node, and the 2nm slippage, which is a competitiveness story on the next cycle and matters more for the longer-dated narrative around the gap with the market leader and with the domestic memory business's own capex. Prior form here is that advanced-node delays at Samsung's foundry have tended to surface in press reports before any formal guidance revision, with sell-side model changes following the disclosure rather than preceding it. The follow-ons worth watching are any commentary from the next earnings call on foundry utilisation and advanced-node yield progress, and whether prospective customers are confirmed or remain unnamed, since named wins have historically been the trigger for re-ratings in this story. Single-source Korean press reports on Samsung's chip roadmap have been directionally reliable but prone to revision on timing.