Jensen Huang, Nvidia chief executive officer (CEO), on the 7th held back-to-back meetings at PC bang internet cafés with Jang Byung-gyu, Krafton chair, and Kim Taek-jin, NC CEO, leaders of Korea's game industry. At the gathering, Huang referenced the new PC processor "N1X," unveiled on June 1 at Computex, Taiwan's information and communications technology (ICT) expo, and emphasized, "We are trying to reinvent the PC. We will make PCs that work with AI."
On the third day of his Korea visit, around 1:20 p.m., Huang met Jang at a PC bang near Sinnonhyeon Station in Seoul's Gangnam District and joined a PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS event. PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS is Krafton's flagship title, and Krafton, in collaboration with Nvidia, also introduced an AI virtual human, "PUBG Ally," inside the game.
After stepping out of a sedan, Huang shook hands with Chair Jang. The area was packed with people hoping to see Huang. Huang also greeted Jang Tae-seok, Krafton head of the BATTLEGROUNDS IP franchise, and Lee Kang-wook, Krafton chief AI officer (CAIO), and posed for photos at the PC bang entrance.
Inside the PC bang, Huang said, "Thanks to Korea, esports exists around the world," adding, "So I always like coming to Korea. (Nvidia) grew together with you." Huang said, "We are reinventing the PC for the first time in 40 years," and introduced, "It took three years to create a new chip with the code name 'N1X,' and this chip runs computer graphics and also runs AI."
Inside the PC bang, he also held a raffle for invited gamers and influencers, giving away the latest graphics card "RTX 5090" and an "RTX Spark laptop." The RTX 5090 had the phrase "Love Korea" written on it.
After the event, Chair Jang told reporters, "Because it was a short event, it wasn't a situation where we could talk business," but added, "It seems Jensen Huang wanted to check the reactions of real gamers and users at a PC bang."
Jang said, "Krafton has been discussing a great deal of collaboration with Nvidia, and since April last year when Krafton CEO Kim Chang-han met Huang, we have been holding steady meetings." He continued, "Krafton has also, over the past one to two years, been preparing technology that combines games and AI through cooperation with Nvidia," adding, "Today was an event that briefly showed gamers the new chip and technology, and the new platform created by games and AI, and it is like a starting point where games and AI meet."
He said, "Nvidia is a company long rooted in the game industry, and the technology it newly introduced also aligns with the trend where games and AI meet," adding, "Recently, the technology's center of gravity has been expanding from games to AI."
Jang also spoke about the status of the game industry. He said, "Korea is steadily chasing to be around No. 3 in AI worldwide, and in games we seem to be doing a bit better than third," adding, "So it's natural (for Huang) to come to Korea and visit game companies, and we will keep talking in the future."
To commemorate the event, Jang said he would provide chicken to everyone in attendance. The idea was inspired by the symbolic victory phrase in BATTLEGROUNDS, "Winner, winner, chicken dinner!"
Huang then crossed the street to another PC bang, "Portal PC bang," to meet NC CEO Kim Taek-jin and game fans. NC Executive Vice President Bae Jae-heon and Senior Executive Vice President Lee Sung-gu also joined.
Huang also joined the "Surprise Live" broadcast, an event for AION2 users, to exchange views on the development direction of the game industry and AI technology. NC's massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) AION2 features Nvidia's latest technologies, "DLSS Frame Generation" and "Nvidia Reflex."
Taking the stage, Huang shouted to fans, "Is everyone enjoying AION2? Who's the best?" and added, "Nvidia GeForce and Korean esports have grown together. I love you. Thank you." Fans responded with cheers. At the event, Huang also gave a "RTX 5090" graphics processing unit (GPU) to a fan through a raffle.
Huang said, "We will make PCs that work with AI," adding, "So we created a new computer, a new PC architecture, and developed a new chip, 'N1X.'" He continued, "With the new architecture, PCs can be used for design and creation, as well as for video games and a wide range of purposes."
On June 5, for the first stop of his Korea visit, Huang met "Faker" Lee Sang-hyeok and other T1 League of Legends (LoL) players at the "T1 Basecamp" PC bang in the city, actively moving to expand contact with the domestic game industry.