Naver disclosed the contract structure of its artificial intelligence (AI) factory project, which it is pushing ahead with based on Nvidia's $1 billion equity investment (about 1.43 trillion won) and Brookfield's infrastructure investment of up to $9 billion (about 12.88 trillion won). Through strategic cooperation with Nvidia, it will secure graphics processing units (GPUs), and it will reduce its financial burden through a special-purpose vehicle (SPV) created by Brookfield.
According to the "Naver AI Factory phase 1" References disclosed by Naver on the 3rd, the investment agreement targets the 200 MW (megawatt) phase 1 project within the total 1 GW (gigawatt) AI factory buildout plan released in June.
Under the deal structure, Nvidia will make a $1 billion equity investment in Naver, and Naver will hold the AI factory operator (the operator) as a wholly owned subsidiary. Brookfield will invest up to $9 billion to form an SPV, and the SPV will purchase or own the GPUs and data center facilities needed to run the AI factory. Instead of purchasing all facilities with its own funds, Naver will pay the SPV for computing usage to reduce its initial investment burden.
Naver said Nvidia's equity investment is meaningful for securing a stable GPU supply chain rather than simply raising funds.
Naver granted Brookfield a 12-week exclusive negotiation right and temporarily suspended discussions with other potential investors during this period. If negotiations are completed within 12 weeks, Brookfield will be selected as the final financing partner, and if the talks fall through, discussions with other investors will resume.