▲ Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang
"Korea is a great opportunity and a great future to invest in artificial intelligence (AI)." Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who leads the global AI industry, has visited South Korea again, seven months after his last visit in October last year.
Compared to his two-day, one-night visit last year, his stay in Korea has extended to four days and three nights, with a schedule so packed that it is hard to count his daily appointments on one hand.
Huang's "broad-ranging moves" are evaluated as highly significant, as they go beyond simple supply chain management to designate South Korea—the powerhouse of memory semiconductors—as a key hub for next-generation AI industries, including physical AI and AI infrastructure.
According to industry sources today (June 9), during his visit, Huang held comprehensive meetings not only with semiconductor giants like Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, but also with domestic AI-related companies including Hyundai Motor, LG, Naver, and Doosan.
These meetings are interpreted as being driven by the need for cooperation in physical AI and AI infrastructure as part of the next-generation AI industry.
Unlike other AI powerhouses, South Korea is evaluated as one of the few countries that simultaneously possesses a world-class manufacturing base, making it an optimal partner for implementing physical AI.
Among the companies Huang visited the previous day, Hyundai Motor and LG Group are companies with strengths in combining manufacturing capabilities with AI.
During this visit, LG Group announced a collaboration with Nvidia to develop reference (development standard) robots based on Nvidia's robot AI platform, the Isaac GR00T ecosystem.
Hyundai Motor Group is cooperating with Nvidia in fields such as humanoid robots and mobility. Visiting Hyundai Motor Group's headquarters, Huang said, "We want to transform the future by combining AI with Hyundai's mobility expertise.
Now is Hyundai's time."
Doosan Group also agreed, through Doosan Robotics, to develop an Agentic Robot Operating System (OS) utilizing Nvidia's platform, and to cooperate on reference robot solutions that perform precision tasks based on this system.
Doosan Bobcat will also apply Nvidia's physical AI technology to equipment in construction, logistics, and other sectors for development.
In the case of AI infrastructure, it is a concept that encompasses everything from semiconductors to data centers, power grids, networks, and software platforms, and it is hard to find a country other than South Korea that possesses all of these foundations.
In this field, SK Group is notably expanding its presence in the AI infrastructure market, focusing on High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) and AI data centers, while Naver is building a Korean-style AI ecosystem based on its own hyperscale AI model and cloud capabilities.
On the occasion of Huang's visit, SK Group announced a plan to build a future AI factory together and elevate their existing memory-focused cooperation to a group-wide level.
SK hynix will strengthen its long-term technological partnership by sharing its research and development (R&D) roadmap with Nvidia to jointly develop next-generation memory, while SK Telecom will operate an AI factory based on Nvidia's platform in Korea next year.
SK's position in memory semiconductors also remains solid.
Huang confirmed, "SK hynix will continue to remain Nvidia's largest memory partner in the future."
Naver plans to expand its AI infrastructure business with Nvidia, starting with the operation of a 55-megawatt (MW) AI factory next year.
It will also participate as a key global partner of Nvidia to build AI infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and European markets.
LG Group has also become a partner in Nvidia's AI infrastructure business in areas such as cooling solutions and design technology (LG Electronics), AI factories (LG Uplus, LG CNS), and power solutions (LG Energy Solution).
The industry interpreted Huang's meetings with Seoul National University and various startups during his visit as a sign that he views South Korea as a mid- to long-term strategic hub for future talent and core technology cooperation.
During his visit, Huang revealed plans to establish an AI research center in South Korea and extended an invitation, saying, "If you know any AI researchers or engineers, please tell them to come work here."
The collaboration between Nvidia and Naver, which is strengthening its sovereign AI capabilities, as well as Upstage, which has strengths in its own large language model (LLM), could serve as a model for fostering the AI industry in countries around the world.
Industry analysts suggest that this all-around cooperation spanning business and academia is a result of South Korea being recognized as an "AI Full-Stack Partner."
Unlike the United States, which has strengths in semiconductor design and software, and Taiwan, which excels in foundry (contract manufacturing), South Korea possesses global competitiveness across the entire AI ecosystem—including memory, foundry, infrastructure, and services—as well as manufacturing capabilities.
Pointing to the semiconductor industry, manufacturing capabilities, and AI competitiveness as key factors behind the cooperation with Korean companies, Huang said, "The combination of these capabilities creates the perfect environment for Korea to capitalize on the AI revolution."
Also, referring to South Korea's robotics industry ecosystem, he emphasized, "Korea is a great opportunity and a great future to invest in AI."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.