SK Group will join the build-out of global AI infrastructure by forming a partnership with OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, on memory supply and the establishment and operation of an artificial intelligence (AI) data center (DC) in Korea's southwest region.
SK said on the 1st that Chair Chey Tae-won and OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman, along with executives from both sides, met at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, and signed a letter of intent (LOI) for memory supply and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation for the southwest AI DC.
Chey said, "We will focus SK's integrated AI infrastructure capabilities, spanning from memory semiconductors to data centers, on this partnership to actively drive global AI infrastructure innovation and strengthen the national AI competitiveness of the Republic of Korea."
SK will join the Stargate project as a key partner to build global AI infrastructure. Stargate is a four-year, $500 billion (700 trillion won) data construction project announced in Jan. by OpenAI, U.S. software and cloud corporation Oracle, and Japanese investment corporation SoftBank.
SK hynix will serve as a high-bandwidth memory (HBM) semiconductor supply partner for the project. SK hynix plans to establish a production system capable of responding in a timely manner to HBM supply requests of up to 900,000 DRAM wafers per month.
In addition, the companies agreed to actively cooperate to execute OpenAI's AI accelerator (GPU) procurement strategy and to keep expanding collaboration between the two sides. Stargate is expected to generate massive semiconductor demand exceeding twice the current global HBM production capacity on a wafer basis.
SK Telecom will also jointly build an OpenAI-dedicated AI data center in the southwest region to realize a "Korean-style Stargate." Based on the AI data center, the two sides plan to identify AI use cases in B2C (business-to-consumer transaction) and B2B (business-to-business transaction), and to cooperate on pilot operations of next-generation computing and data center solutions.
Korea is expected to serve as a test bed for global AI innovation, backed by world-class telecommunications and power infrastructure, semiconductor technology, and robust AI demand. The southwest AI data center is forecast to establish itself as an AI data center hub in Asia, forming a foundation for sustainable cooperation.
SK assessed that its participation in Stargate will serve as a starting point for a global AI leadership alliance and an opportunity to solidify the Korea-U.S. AI economic alliance.
SK Group is reinventing its business portfolio by making AI a new pillar of growth and is strengthening cooperation with global big tech, including holding a groundbreaking ceremony for "SK AI Data Center Ulsan" with Amazon Web Services (AWS) in Aug.