Alice Huang Allegedly Diverted 240,000 Nvidia Chips.

• The Information reported that whenever orders stalled, Alice Huang (then a Megaspeed director) stepped in to resolve them—$7.5 billion worth of H100, H200, and A100 chips.
• A U.S. Department of Commerce on-site investigation found untouched Nvidia equipment stacked in Megaspeed’s warehouse.
• Megaspeed was a Singapore subsidiary of a Chinese gaming company. Its Malaysian subsidiary, Speedmatrix, purchased Nvidia chips and transferred them to Shanghai’s Century Reach.
• Megaspeed’s major shareholder, Huang Lelimited, was a shell company created by Alice Huang’s brother, Huang Wei.
• Century Reach became an Nvidia partner just four months after its establishment.

How Much Did Trump Know?

• He received a report before his May visit to China—when Jensen Huang joined Air Force One in Alaska.
• The U.S. Department of Commerce also allowed H200 sales to China around this time.
• There were requests to place Megaspeed on the restricted entities list, but the department delayed action.
• Chris McGwire (former U.S. government official) criticized, “It’s incomprehensible that the Commerce Department didn’t block Megaspeed’s chip purchases.”
• Nvidia maintains, “There is no reason to suspect confidential leaks or national security breaches.”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

What Matters Now.

[Breaking] Could Jensen Huang Be Ousted?

• Nvidia’s board is reportedly considering removing Jensen Huang (Nvidia CEO). The Wall Street Journal exclusively reported this.
• The Wall Street Journal analyzed, “If Jensen Huang steps down, the era of him leading the global AI boom and emerging as a geopolitical star would come to a close.” It added, “One of the world’s most valuable companies would face the need to find a new leader.”
• Jensen Huang’s stake is 3.6%.
• Yesterday, Nvidia’s stock rose 2.9%, but after the market closed, it fell more than 8%.

Too Big to Fire: Jensen Huang.

• Too big to fire.
• The Financial Times noted, “If a company cannot function without its founder, it suggests a problem with its business model and culture,” adding, “An imperial CEO is harmful to both the company and capitalism.”
• Since ChatGPT’s emergence, Nvidia’s stock has nearly multiplied thirteenfold. Huang grew the market by investing in companies that would become customers. The prevailing view is that no one can immediately replace him.

Anthropic’s Value Could Reach $4 Trillion.

• Few companies have grown as fast as Anthropic.
• Goldman Sachs forecasts $273 billion in 2028 sales, with the company’s value already at five times that level.
• At $1.3 trillion alone, it would surpass Berkshire Hathaway or Walmart—immediately becoming the second-largest company after Tesla.
• Arjun Bhatia (William Blair analyst) assessed, “$1.5 trillion is also quite reasonable.” Seven times sales would put it on par with Microsoft.
• Aswath Damodaran (NYU Stern School of Business professor) projected, “Within a decade, if sales reach $1.5 trillion and computational costs fall, the company’s value could hit $4 trillion.” Of course, it could also shrink below $400 billion.
• Related Link.

Good Enough Is No Longer Enough.

• “Bubbles demand more, better, and faster endlessly.”
• Axios’s assessment.
• Anthropic’s IPO target has shrunk to $140 billion. Even a record-breaking IPO struggles to reassure markets if it fails to meet already inflated expectations.

CoreWeave Effect: Tech Stocks Surge.

• CoreWeave’s Q3 revenue hit $3.66 billion, up 168% year-on-year, surpassing the market’s $3.54 billion estimate.
• A signal that AI infrastructure demand remains unshaken.
• Micron Technology rose 11.9%, while Nvidia gained 2.9%.
• SK Hynix ADS, listed on Nasdaq, climbed 9.7%.
• All three major US stock indices rose yesterday. The S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq gained 1.31%, 0.48%, and 1.60% respectively.
• Inflation remains the wildcard in the US. The possibility of another rate hike is resurfacing.

Deep Dive.

Real Estate Issue Unites People Power and Democratic Parties.

• Both the Democratic Party and People Power Party held real estate debates in parallel.
• At the People Power Party’s debate, former Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan warned, “No government can beat the market,” proposing solutions like abolishing mortgage loan caps and drastically lifting land transaction permit zones.
• Choi Kyung-hwan harshly criticized, “These are insane regulations that no one who understands the economy could impose.”
• At the Democratic Party’s debate, Myongji University Professor Choi Byung-cheon argued, “Discrimination against non-resident single-homeowners must be abolished.”
• Lee Jun-seok (Reform Party lawmaker) remarked, “Democratic Party lawmakers will ultimately have no choice but to adjust multiple tax systems, including the comprehensive real estate tax.”
• Only five attendees joined the Democratic Party’s debate.
• Related Link.

Party-Government Conflict: Truly Resolved?

• “If this continues, seats could be halved in the 2028 general election,” one source said.
• Yesterday, Lee Jae-myung (President) summoned Kim Min-seok (Democratic Party leader) and Han Byung-do (Democratic Party floor leader) for a meeting.
• A Blue House official stated, “While it appeared there were disagreements between the Blue House and the Democratic Party, there were none in reality,” adding, “The real estate tax system was already finalized before the dinner.”
• According to Chosun Ilbo, the Democratic Party reacted heatedly, accusing the government of undermining the tax reform plan. An anonymous government official warned, “If we retreat further, we’ll lose all policy initiative,” and explained, “It’s not a power struggle—it’s that there’s no room to back down.”
• A Democratic Party official countered, “The Blue House is banking on falling home prices in Gangnam’s three districts, but the real issue is rising jeonse and monthly rents,” adding, “Soaring home prices in northern Seoul reflect people fleeing to outskirts’ self-owned homes because they can’t afford rising jeonse costs.”
• Related Link.

Jeong Cheong-rae and Choi Min-hee Backing Lee Jae-myung.

• JoongAng Ilbo surveyed 19 Democratic Party lawmakers in Seoul, and 11 responded that the comprehensive real estate tax should be revised or eased.
• Yesterday, during the Democratic Party debate, a camera captured a moment when someone tried to cover the word “reconsideration” on a banner reading “Reconsider Regulations on Non-Resident Single-Home Ownership” with white paper, only to be stopped by Lee Eun-ju (Democratic Party lawmaker). In an editorial, JoongAng Ilbo criticized it as “a pathetic scene.”
• Lee Eun-ju said, “We may not all think alike, but we are communicating, and I believe differing views should be debated fiercely.”
• The story goes that lawmakers are watching the Blue House’s reactions.
• Jeong Cheong-rae (Democratic Party lawmaker) and Choi Min-hee (Democratic Party lawmaker) have also drawn attention for their dissenting voices. Jeong Cheong-rae argued, “The Lee Jae-myung government’s preferential policy for actual residents must be upheld.” Choi Min-hee criticized, “Why is the party undermining the government’s reform policies?”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

Recovering Excess Reconstruction Profits: Banpo Hyundai Pays 220 Million Won.

• Banpo Hyundai (Banpo Centrium Asterium) bears a total burden of 17.9 billion won.
• Eunma Apartments face 460 million won. A 76㎡ owner must prepare 900 million won in cash to receive an 84㎡ unit.
• Ji Sung-woo (Sungkyunkwan University professor) stated, “There is ample room to view this as a violation of property rights.”
• Kim Je-kyung (CEO of Toomi Real Estate Consulting) warned, “An extreme situation could arise where the association seizes union members’ apartments through provisional attachments.”
• Related Link.

Another Take.

No Apology Received from Ukraine.

• Cho Hee-yoon (Minister of Foreign Affairs) met with Andrii Sybiha (Ukrainian Foreign Minister), but no apology was offered.
• Despite Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Ukrainian President) summoning Park Ki-chang (South Korea’s Ambassador to Ukraine) and withdrawing half of the embassy staff in protest of the public disclosure of North Korean POW repatriation, there has been no response.

Oh Se-hoon: “Can’t Run General Election Under Jang Dong-hyeok’s System.”.

• Power struggles over nomination rights have already begun.
• Oh Se-hoon (Seoul Mayor) stated, “We must go into the election in a state where voters can see new hope in our party,” to which Jang Dong-hyeok (People Power Party leader) retorted, “Maybe we should just switch positions.”
• Some argue for transitioning to an emergency leadership committee. One People Power Party official said, “Can Oh Se-hoon, who seeks to expand centrist appeal, and Jang Dong-hyeok, who aims to solidify hardline support, really coexist?”
• Oh Se-hoon also subtly checked Han Dong-hoon (independent lawmaker)’s potential return to the party. While stating, “I think it’s essential for winning the general election,” he drew a line: “Consensus must come first.”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

Military Academy Integration Scrapped After Four Months.

• Proposed a revised plan to keep the existing Korea Military Academy (KMA), Naval Academy, and Air Force Academy intact while establishing a main campus at Jaundae in Daejeon.
• A 1+2+1 system is likely: first-year students receive integrated education at the main campus, second- and third-years attend their respective academies for specialized training, and fourth-years return to the main campus for graduation.
• Kang Shin-chul (Minister of National Defense) stated, “There is absolutely no intention to abolish the military academies.”
• The integration discussion began in August following an order by Lee Jae-myung (President). He had criticized, “No responsibility was assigned to the Army Academy, which staged three coups,” but the plan is likely to fizzle out.
• Yoon Tae-gon (Director of The More Political Analysis) pointed out, “The problem is pushing policies before they are fully matured.” In an editorial, Kyunghyang Shinmun emphasized, “The goals of reform must be clearly re-established.”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

Fuel Tax Cut Enters Fifth Year.

• Started in November 2021 as a six-month measure, it has now extended beyond five years.
• Including VAT, fuel taxes stand at 698 won per liter for gasoline, 436 won for diesel, and 152 won for LPG—122, 145, and 51 won lower respectively than pre-cut levels.
• A 50-liter fill saves gasoline cars 6,100 won and diesel cars 7,250 won.
• Related Link.

Household Loan Era Enters 1,200 Trillion Won Mark.

• 1,204 trillion won as of end-October.
• The Bank of Korea explained, “The increase is due to the continued rise in mortgage loans, compounded by a shift toward growth in other types of loans.”
• Lee Seung-yeop (Deputy Head of the Bank of Korea’s Market Management Team) said, “We attribute the October surge in individual investors’ net stock purchases to its impact on credit loans.” This implies that ‘debt-driven investing’ rose even as stock prices plummeted.
• Related Link.

1.6 Trillion Won Penalty for Government Bond Bid-Rigging.

• The Fair Trade Commission imposed fines on 15 banks and securities firms—the largest ever for a single case.
• It determined that interest rates and volumes were colluded on or information was exchanged in 150 government bond bids. Artificially inflated awarded rates increased the government’s interest burden.
• Calls or messenger exchanges occurred until 1–2 minutes before bid deadlines, with remarks like, “I’ll match too” and “We should write similar goalposts (bid rates) as others.”
• KB Securities faced the highest penalty at 332.2 billion won.
• A financial sector insider interviewed by Chosun Ilbo said, “If executives fail to respond while facing penalties of hundreds of billions, they could face liability for breach of duty. Litigation is highly likely.”
• Related Link.

The Fix.

Local Doctor Quotas Are No Panacea.

• This system selects ‘local doctors’ at the medical school admissions stage, covers their tuition, and mandates 10 years of compulsory service in the region after graduation. It was benchmarked from Japan and will recruit its first students next year.
• Jang Bu-seung (professor at Kansai University of International Studies) warned, “It could lead to serious side effects.”
• Japan allocated all its increased medical school quotas—expanded over 17 years since 2008—to local doctors. Yet between 2010 and 2020, surgeons decreased by 32%, obstetricians by 4%, while local clinics rose by 9% and cosmetic/plastic surgery by 44%.
• In Jang’s view, Korean doctors fear becoming ‘stagnant local practitioners.’ “Who would want to be a rural nobody after 10 years, while peers become nationally renowned specialists?”
• Jang argued the term ‘essential medicine’ itself is flawed. “No other country uses it. The accurate term isn’t ‘essential medicine’ but ‘undesirable specialties.’”
• Once essential/non-essential distinctions emerge, politicians gain leverage to manipulate resource allocation. In conflicts between insured care and ‘essential medicine’ definitions, politicians are tempted to intervene in ‘non-essential insured items.’ Notable examples include hair loss and abortion pills.
• Related Link.

Youth Employment Declines for 48th Consecutive Month.

• Youth population fell by 141,000, but youth employment dropped by 196,000.
• Youth employment rate stands at 42.9%. Bin Hyun-jun (Director of Social Statistics at the National Data Office) stated, “The decline in employment exceeds the population decrease.”
• Employment among those aged 65+ rose by 255,000. Total employment increased by 139,000—meaning declines in other age groups were offset by gains in seniors.
• Last year’s consumption coupon effect has faded, with a strong base effect this year. Employment in accommodation and food services dropped sharply. The JoongAng Ilbo noted a “consumption coupon withdrawal symptom.”
• Polarization in the job market is intensifying.
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

Youth Forced to Idle.

• The Korea Ilbo’s front-page lead article.
• No matter how many qualifications you accumulate or how many resumes you submit, jobs remain elusive.
• While the number of ‘resting’ youth has decreased for nine consecutive months, this merely reflects a shift to job-seeking status—employment itself has not grown.
• They are not resting by choice but have been ‘forced to rest’—hence the term ‘forced-to-idle’ youth.

Full Referral Letters, AI-Generated in 10 Seconds.

• Cho Seung-yeon (Head of Surgery at Yeongwol Medical Center) stated, “Hospitals monopolize information and think only of ‘my patients,’ effectively leaving the medical referral system non-existent.”
• The Ministry of Health and Welfare held an opening ceremony for its public healthcare AI highway. It connects hospitals two hours apart by car online, enabling AI-generated patient referrals, returns, and transfer documents.
• A process that previously took over 10 minutes can now be completed in 10 seconds. The pilot project budget is 3.4 billion won.
• Related Link.

Carbon Budget: Less Than Four Years Remaining.

• Global Carbon Project (GCP) analysis. This year’s emissions: 43.3 billion tons. Remaining carbon budget for 1.5°C target: 150 billion tons.
• Fossil fuel emissions are projected to fall by 0.4%, but overall emissions will rise due to wildfires and deforestation.
• Criticism grows that commitments to clean energy transition lag behind the 2035 target of 35% electrification.

ICYMI.

Solar-Powered Drone Flies for 170 Continuous Hours.

• Second-best globally.
• Developed by the Korea Aerospace Administration, it is a stratospheric unmanned aerial vehicle.
• Wingspan: 30m, takeoff weight: 150kg, with a payload capacity of 20kg.
• Maximum altitude: 21.2km—twice the height of international passenger flights at 10km.
• Related Link.

Hegseth Impeachment Motion Fails.

• Matthew Hegseth’s (U.S. Secretary of Defense) impeachment motion has failed. A proposal to send the bill to the standing committee instead of a plenary vote passed with 211 votes in favor and 204 against.
• It is highly likely the Judiciary Committee—chaired by Republicans—will stall it until year-end.
• Though temporarily blocked, the situation will change if Democrats become the majority in January.
• Trump claimed, “The Democrats’ attempt has failed miserably.” JD Vance (Vice President) added, “Hegseth has committed no impeachable offense.”
• At a press conference, Hegseth called the motion “a ridiculous situation—impeaching a secretary of defense during wartime.”
• Hakeem Jeffries (Democratic House Minority Leader), the likely next Speaker of the House, stated, “This is not the end, but the beginning.”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

1 Light-Day.

• Voyager 1 will pass the 1-light-day mark from Earth on the 18th—25.9 billion kilometers away.
• Signals take one day to reach it, and another day to return.
• Launched in 1977, the probe has been flying for 49 years.
• It flew by Jupiter in 1979, Saturn in 1980, and exited the solar system in 1990.
• In 2012, it became the first human-made object to enter interstellar space.

Worth Reading.

Let’s Tone Down the Seoul National University Fawning.

• There was a time when it was referred to indirectly as “Hanguk University,” but now it’s openly called Seoul National University. It repeatedly emphasizes that characters like Geum-myeong and Woo-young-u are SNU graduates.
• Park Sun-young (writer) pointed out, “The symbol of SNU is overused across Korean societal discourse.” This is because “repeated strong social symbols in countless texts inversely influence reality, reinforcing social hierarchies.”
• “Without knowing why it’s good, it’s become good simply because everyone says so—in this way, ‘Sha-dae’ has become similar to Chanel. Chanel is Chanel only because people treat it as Chanel.”
• Park suggested, “Our society needs to reduce the frequency of the term Seoul National University and lower the concentration of ‘social fawning.’” It’s a call to stop the tacky fuss and “stop feeding the hype.”
• Related Link.

Golden Ticket Syndrome.

• South Korea dominates top rankings in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) but falls below average in the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC).
• Han Sung-hee (Seoul National University professor) noted, “Behind the dazzling statistical achievements lie fierce college entrance competition, an inflated private education market, and excessive study hours that push students to their limits.”
• The analysis concludes, “It is less a victory of the education system than an ‘overachievement’ produced by the system.”
• Golden Ticket Syndrome refers to the phenomenon where nearly all students and parents compete to obtain a golden ticket—admission to a prestigious university or a major corporation—granted to only a few.
• Why are students smart yet adults underperforming? Han Sung-hee emphasized, “A paradigm shift from educational competition to social competition that bypasses it is necessary.”
• Related Link.

Corrigibility Is Key.

• Humans correct their mistakes. AI tends to treat intervention as an obstacle.
• AI doesn’t know how to stop itself. It admits errors but is fundamentally designed to maximize rewards.
• An AI agent, when asked to find a way to move up a gym waitlist, hacked into the reservation system and deleted the first-in-line booking. This is a problem alignment alone cannot solve.
• Nate Soares (CEO of Machine Intelligence Research) said, “The goal isn’t to make AI ‘good’—it’s to ensure it doesn’t spiral out of control and kill everyone.”
• Related Link.

Why Kim Bu-gyeom Was Left Out.

• Kim Bu-gyeom (former Prime Minister), who was considered a successor after Lee Seok-yeon (former National Integration Committee Chairperson) stepped down, was quietly sidelined.
• Lee Seong-taek (Korea Ilbo reporter) noted, “Kim Bu-gyeom’s preemptive pledge to actively criticize the president if appointed integration chairperson likely became an obstacle.”
• Lee Jae-myung (President)’s inner circle is being filled with quiet technocrats and longtime Seongnam-line associates.
• Lee Seong-taek warned, “If even heartfelt criticism is dismissed as an attack, eventually only those who say what the leader wants to hear will remain.”
• Related Link.

How to Embrace Different Perspectives.

• November 16 is International Tolerance Day. UNESCO defines tolerance as “respect, appreciation, and understanding of diversity.”
• Lee Hee-yong (former head of the Media Promotion Foundation) emphasized, “Tolerance is an active attitude of recognizing others’ human rights and freedoms, unlike concession or charity. It does not mean tolerating injustice or abandoning one’s convictions, nor should one’s views be imposed on others.”
• The message is: “Accepting differing views is uncomfortable for everyone, but if we refuse to tolerate them, we must realize our own views will not be accepted by others.”
• Related Link.

Let’s Not Ask About Fewer Than Five.

• Workplaces with fewer than five employees are exempt from protections against unfair dismissal, annual leave, and workplace harassment bans.
• Over four million workers are employed in workplaces with fewer than five employees.
• Jeong So-yeon (The Dong-A Ilbo columnist) pointed out, “The exceptions for workplaces with fewer than five employees lack consistency.”
• Even in workplaces with fewer than five employees, the Labor Standards Act technically applies. Employers must provide severance notice payments but cannot be challenged for unfair dismissal. They must pay weekly rest allowances but are not required to pay overtime premiums. Workers cannot report workplace harassment but can report sexual harassment.
• A worker doing the same job might have no annual leave if they have three colleagues, but gain it once a fourth employee joins.
• Jeong So-yeon emphasized, “Abolishing the complex exceptions for workplaces with fewer than five employees is necessary for societal acceptance and trust.” The proposal is: “Apply the Labor Standards Act to all workers and move forward.”
• Related Link.

Feedback.

Join the AI Journalism Hackathon.

• Slow News, in collaboration with OpenAI, the Korea Press Foundation, and the Korean Society for Journalism and Information Studies, is hosting an AI+Journalism Hackathon.
• Hearing about it a hundred times is less effective than seeing it firsthand, asking questions, discussing together, and building it yourself. Experience the explosive energy of a hackathon where experts share know-how, analyze real-world cases, and implement ideas.
• We’ll also grapple with the principles of journalism and reporting ethics in the AI era.
• Participation is free, and we’ll provide a ChatGPT credit worth 159,000 KRW. Lunch, snacks, and prizes are included.