Sohn’s company spent $10 billion dollars on research and development in 2012. Much of the effort was focused on improving the performance of telecommunications networks and the devices that are at the receiving end – the smartphones. Samsung hopes the incremental $100 million going to outside firms will help entrepreneurs, inventors and academic research institutions turn unproven technologies into successful commercial devices, sub-components and applications.

Does Samsung expect immediate returns from the $100 million. Not so says Sohn. The focus of this investment will be on fundamental research in science and technology that he states “takes a long time to incubate and develop……we want to step in.”

Samsung is the world’s leader in mobile device technology. Last year the company generated $188 billion in revenue and hopes to see that number double by 2020.