SK Group will seek practical measures to drive strategic business initiatives based on artificial intelligence (AI), innovate the working methods of its members, and strengthen its fundamental competitiveness through the 'Icheon Forum.'
SK Group announced on the 17th that it will hold the 'Icheon Forum 2025' over three days from the 18th to the 20th.
The key agenda for this year's Icheon Forum, now in its 9th iteration, is 'AI and Digital Transformation (DT).'
The schedule for the first day, themed around AI/DT, will take place at the Walkerhill Hotel in Gwangjin District, Seoul.
The opening on the first day will be led by Kwak Noh-jung, president of SK hynix. He is expected to deliver remarks on the expectations for changes brought about by AI across industries, as well as the global success background of AI memory like high bandwidth memory (HBM) and the corporate culture of SK represented by the Supers spirit.
The first session, themed 'Reorganizing the International Order Led by the U.S. and Seeking Solutions for Korean Corporations,' will feature Victor Cha, a Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and Jing Chen, head of the China Analysis Center at the Asia Society Policy Institute, who will participate online and deliver keynote speeches.
Yoon Chi-won, a non-executive director at SK Holdings, Kim Hyun-wook, head of the Sejong Institute, and Park Seok-jung, head of Shinhan Investment Corp., will also join as panelists to discuss the direction of Korea's trade diplomacy and the response strategies of Korean corporations in depth.
The following session, themed 'Establishing the Korean AI Industry Ecosystem and SK's Strategic Role,' will include William Phong, chief strategy officer at DigBI, an AI consulting firm, and Lee Joo-hwan, CEO of Swit, a Silicon Valley-based collaboration tool startup, who will offer suggestions on how Korean corporations can achieve AI independence.
Yoo Kyung-sang, head of SK Telecom's Corporate Strategy Center, Lee Seo-young, CEO of Wrtn, and Park Sung-hyun, CEO of Rebellions, will also attend to discuss strategies for expanding the AI ecosystem considering the uniqueness of Korea and establishing AI data center infrastructure.
Mohammad Ali, vice president of IBM, will present on 'Revitalizing Productivity in Industrial Manufacturing Using AI/DT' based on IBM's case studies. Major SK member companies, including SK hynix, SK Innovation, and SK AX, are also expected to share applicable measures for AI in their manufacturing sites.
A presentation on 'Innovating Work Methods Based on AI: Achievements and Challenges' will also take place, centered around members active in SK's 'Junior Management Group.'
On the 19th, workshops will be held for each member company, focusing on operational improvements and enhancing the execution capabilities of SKMS, including 'sustainable happiness.'
As it enters the AI era, SK is pushing forward operational improvement activities to strengthen its 'fundamental competitiveness.' Last year, it emphasized 'Operation Improvement 1.0,' focusing on stabilizing its financial structure. This year, it aims to advance to 'Operation Improvement 2.0,' which includes enhancing overall operational capabilities with a focus on marketing.
On the last day, the 20th, a session will be held at the SK Serin Headquarters where Chairman Chey Tae-won and CEOs will reflect on the outcomes of the forum together with SK members.
An SK official noted, 'If last year's Icheon Forum was centered around the AI overhaul, this year is focused on expanding the AI ecosystem and enhancing execution capabilities,' adding that 'we will accelerate the group's fundamental competitiveness and future innovations.'