SK Group has become a key partner in OpenAI's artificial intelligence (AI) project, which operates ChatGPT. This is seen as a result of the leadership of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and the technological capabilities of major affiliates such as SK Hynix.

On the 1st, SK Group announced that it had signed a partnership with U.S.-based OpenAI regarding memory supply and the establishment and operation of a Southwest AI Data Center (DC). The signing ceremony, held at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, was attended by SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and other executives from both companies. Specifically, a Memory Supply Letter of Intent (LOI) and a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on cooperation for the Southwest AIDC (AI Data Center) were signed.

Chairman Chey Tae-won stated, “SK has become a core partner in OpenAI’s Stargate project to build global AI infrastructure,” adding, “We will focus SK’s integrated AI infrastructure capabilities, from memory semiconductors to data centers, on this partnership to contribute to global AI infrastructure innovation and strengthen South Korea’s national AI competitiveness.” The Stargate project is a large-scale global AI data center (AIDC) construction initiative led by OpenAI.

In relation to this partnership, SK Hynix is expected to supply high-bandwidth memory (HBM) semiconductors for the Stargate project. This is a recognition of SK Hynix’s AI-dedicated memory semiconductor technology and supply capabilities, which recorded the highest global DRAM sales in the first half of this year. Accordingly, SK Hynix is setting up a production system capable of responding promptly to a request for the supply of up to 900,000 DRAM wafers per month. The HBM supply volume requested by OpenAI is said to be more than double the current global HBM production capacity, indicating the massive semiconductor demand the Stargate project will generate. Additionally, they plan to actively cooperate with OpenAI’s strategy to secure AI accelerators (GPUs) and continue to expand collaboration areas in the future.

SK Telecom is also participating in the Stargate project. Based on its experience in building and operating large-scale data centers, it has signed an MOU with OpenAI. They will jointly establish an AI data center dedicated to OpenAI in the southwestern region of South Korea. It is expected to play a key role in building a ‘Korean-style Stargate.’ With the establishment of a dedicated AIDC for OpenAI in Korea, the country is anticipated to emerge as a testbed for global AI innovation.

This cooperation is significant as it establishes a strong partnership between SK Group and OpenAI, the world’s leading AI company, for a major AI transformation in Korea. SK Group expects the Southwest AIDC to become a hub for AIDC in Asia and serve as a foundation for sustainable cooperation. Furthermore, SK Group aims to build an AI belt connecting the east and west of Korea with the ‘SK AI Data Center Ulsan’ currently being pursued, contributing to regional balanced development. SK Group also expects that the participation of domestic companies in the Stargate project will further solidify the economic alliance between South Korea and the United States. Particularly, the collaboration model, which complements South Korea’s strengths in manufacturing and telecommunications with the United States’ leadership in AI technology, is seen as a potential starting point for a global AI leadership alliance.

According to SK Group, Chairman Chey Tae-won and CEO Sam Altman have been collaborating since 2023, designing the future of AI infrastructure. They have deeply agreed on the need for dedicated semiconductor development and infrastructure construction to cope with the explosive workload required for AI learning and inference and have been discussing the joint development of innovative AI infrastructure, such as a new memory-computing architecture for developing next-generation AI models without hardware bottlenecks.

An SK Group representative emphasized, “This partnership marks the starting point of technological innovation cooperation across the entire AI infrastructure cycle, from chip development to data center construction and operation,” adding, “It is expected to present a new paradigm in the global AI ecosystem.”

Meanwhile, SK Group announced that it has embarked on innovating its business portfolio with AI as a growth axis. In August, it held a groundbreaking ceremony for the SK AI Data Center Ulsan in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS), strengthening cooperation with global big tech companies. SK Group plans to continue enhancing big tech cooperation and related investments to expand its market participation as a key player during the global AI transformation period and contribute to the expansion of the K-AI ecosystem.

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