SEMIFIVE, a prominent provider of design solutions and a leader in platform-based custom silicon, has officially submitted its preliminary Initial Public Offering (IPO) application to the Korea Exchange (KRX) on July 17, 2025. This step marks the beginning of its listing journey on the KOSDAQ, with Samsung Securities and UBS acting as joint lead underwriters.
Since its inception in 2019, SEMIFIVE has experienced significant growth, raising a total of KRW 240 billion from a range of notable investors, including Pavilion Capital, a subsidiary of Temasek, as well as Mirae Asset Venture Investment, Korea Investment Partners, Korea Development Bank, and Doosan Tesna. By 2024, just five years after its founding, the company reported annual revenue of KRW 111.8 billion and achieved the highest sales among Samsung Electronics’ official Design Solution Partners (DSPs) in the system semiconductor category.
The core advantage of SEMIFIVE lies in its innovative, reusable, and automation-driven System on Chip (SoC) design platform. This technology allows the company to engage with the entire value chain of system semiconductors, from chip design to mass production and intellectual property (IP) business. By adopting this integrated approach, SEMIFIVE has been able to establish a stable revenue pipeline throughout all stages of the value chain.
In collaboration with leading Korean AI fabless companies such as FuriosaAI and Rebellions, SEMIFIVE has successfully co-designed and mass-produced AI and high-performance computing (HPC) chips. This partnership has contributed to a solid revenue foundation. SEMIFIVE is also expanding its customer base through projects with companies like HyperAccel, Mobilint, and XCENA, while driving international revenue growth through new design contracts in the U.S., China, and Japan.
Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Analog Bits, a global leader in low-power mixed-signal IP, SEMIFIVE has established a reliable revenue stream in the IP sector. Analog Bits supplies essential IPs, including clocking, sensors, and SERDES, to major global foundries such as TSMC, Samsung Foundry, and Intel. By integrating these IPs into its SoC platform with automated implementation, SEMIFIVE enhances both design efficiency and differentiation in a competitive market.
With a workforce exceeding 400 employees, SEMIFIVE has set up regional hubs in the U.S., China, Japan, Vietnam, India, and the Czech Republic. These hubs aim to strengthen local customer engagement and provide technical support. The company is also increasing its research and development investment to bolster technological competitiveness and is actively advancing the development of ‘Premier’, a CPU chiplet platform based on Arm architecture, in partnership with Arm as a Total Design Partner.
“Our vision is to become the new global hub of custom silicon,” stated Brandon Cho, the CEO and co-founder of SEMIFIVE. “As AI is applied across a wide range of industries, the demand for ASIC is growing rapidly. We are committed to leading innovation in the next-generation ASIC market and playing a pivotal role.”
SEMIFIVE’s commitment to innovation and growth signals its ambition to expand its influence in the semiconductor industry, particularly as the demand for custom silicon solutions continues to rise globally.
