Samsung seems to be reportedly expanding its Silicon Valley presence by adding a new start-up accelerator. According to report on All Things Digital, the South Korean company has plans to open a new Palo Alto (US) location that will serve as a sort of hub for emerging companies to begin their life in the technology field.
The plans according to the news report were influenced by David Eun, the relatively new Samsung executive vice president and former Google and AOL executive. Unnamed sources told the site that Samsung is close to signing a deal for “a prominent venue” in the California town, where Facebook’s main offices used to reside. The electronics giant, according to All Things D, is looking to find a new home on the second floor of what used to be the Borders Books on University Avenue.
As All Things D pointed out, there is no word on whether the new facility will aim to assist new startups, or grow its own products. No matter, sources told the news site that the incubator will “be aimed at linking Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and other players more closely with Samsung.”
Not exactly the new kid on the block, Samsung announced in September expansion plans which will see the relocation of a U.S. R&D Center to a new 8.5-acre campus in nearby Mountain View, Ca. According to a September news release, the new center will provide what Samsung called “a state-of-the-art campus” with the infrastructure to support the company’s expansive activities.
Construction on the six-story, 385,000-square-foot, class-A office building (as well as two five- or six-story parking structures) is expected to be open in 2014.
Samsung has been facing scrutiny lately over alleged labor abuses in its Chinese manufacturing facilities. In a statement released today, the company said it did not find incidents of child labor at any of its 105 suppliers in China. It did, however, find excessive overtime, fines for lateness or absences, and other infractions.
Samsung will first take steps to prevent child labor. Meanwhile, the company this week celebrated a Galaxy Note II milestone when the smartphone-tablet hybrid sold more than 5 million devices in just two months.
