Table of Contents
A joint task force from the South Korean government and U.S. asset management firm BlackRock will be created to advance a new AI hub initiative
In sum – what to know:
AI hub project – a memorandum of understanding between South Korea and BlackRock sets a framework for building a hyperscale AI data center hub powered by renewable energy.
APAC AI leader – Korean officials said the hub will attract global capital and technology projects, enabling South Korea to spearhead regional hyperscale development.
The government of South Korea and U.S. asset management firm BlackRock have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to build a hyperscale artificial intelligence (AI) data center hub in the Asian country, according to a report in the Korea Herald. The two parties expect the AI hub to be completed within a decade. The agreement was formalized during a meeting in New York between South Korean president Lee Jae Myung and BlackRock chairman and chief executive Larry Fink.
According to South Korean officials, the planned AI infrastructure will be designed to power hyperscale AI applications and will rely on renewable energy. It will see South Korea “spearhead the establishment of an AI-related infrastructure hub in the Asia-Pacific region”, attracting both capital and advanced technology projects that depend on high-performance computing.
President Lee underscored South Korea’s readiness to lead in AI adoption, stating that the country could be exemplary in its swift adoption of AI and its rapid transition to renewable energy. The report said a joint government-BlackRock task force will be created to advance the initiative. Precise details about the project’s scale, location, and capacity are still under discussion, it seems.
Earlier this week, Korea-based Samsung and SK Telecom announced partnerships with U.S. AI firm OpenAI linked to the latter’s Stargate initiative, a global AI infrastructure program. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix (stylised SK hynix) will increase production of advanced memory chips, with a target of 900,000 DRAM wafer starts per month.
The agreements also stipulate plans to explore next-generation AI data centers in Korea. OpenAI signed an MoU with the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) to assess opportunities for facilities outside the Seoul metropolitan area.
In parallel, SK Telecom signed an MoU with OpenAI to study the development of an AI data center in Korea. Samsung C&T, Samsung Heavy Industries, and Samsung SDS will also evaluate potential projects for additional data center capacity.
