Samsung Shifts Senior Semiconductor Architect to Mobile Division

Samsung has recently moved a senior semiconductor architect into its mobile division. This is likely because the company wants to solidify AI as a core part of its smartphone hardware. As such, the firm will be able to integrate more advanced AI features directly into its Galaxy devices without relying on cloud servers.

Samsung bolsters mobile AI leadership team with Heonjae Ha

According to a report from Kedglobal, Samsung has repositioned its semiconductor expert, Heonjae Ha, to the mobile division as the head of Application Processor (AP) Technology Group. In this new role, he will be in charge of SoC, memory, and storage for devices. These three components play a key role in enabling cutting-edge AI capabilities on smartphones. Ha’s experience could help the company optimize the components to offer faster, more efficient on-device AI.

Speaking of his experience, Ha worked at SK Hynix, Apple, and Meta before joining Samsung. At SK Hynix (Oct 2009 – Jul 2013), he helped design and verify different memory chips, including LPDDR and DDR4 DRAMs. At Apple (Oct 2018 – May 2022), he worked on integrating memory subsystems into chip lines, including the S series and M series. Later, at Meta (May 2022 – Jan 2024), he contributed to the full silicon lifecycle for data center chips.

In 2024, Samsung brought Ha on board as a Corporate Vice President (still holds that role) for the planning and execution of Custom IP development. The company then appointed him as head of its System-on-Chip (SoC) architecture team, putting him in charge of Neural Processing Units (NPUs) and RISC-V processors. In December 2025, that role ended, and Ha is now part of the Korean firm’s mobile division.

Samsung’s Mobile eXperience (MX) division recently confirmed that the upcoming Galaxy S26 series will offer Agentic AI experiences. Now the recent repositioning of Heonjae Ha shows the company’s intention to further strengthen its leadership in AI smartphones.