SEOUL, May 13 (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics said on Wednesday it regretted the collapse of pay deal talks with its South Korean union, flagging concerns that it could heighten anxiety among employees, shareholders and the public.

The company said it would continue efforts to prevent a worst-case scenario through what it described as "sincere dialogue" with the union.

The union leader said earlier on Wednesday that it failed to reach a pay deal with the company, warning that more than 50,000 workers could go ahead with a full strike for 18 days from May 21 that threatens to disrupt production of AI and other chips.

(Reporting by Heekyong Yang; Editing by Ed Davies)