SK Telecom to develop a 2GW AI Factory powered by NVIDIA platforms and SK hynix HBM4
Microsoft, Anthropic, and AWS also join broader AI ecosystem collaboration
SK Group is significantly expanding its global artificial intelligence strategy by strengthening partnerships with NVIDIA and other leading technology companies, aiming to build one of the world's largest AI infrastructure ecosystems.
The Korean conglomerate is broadening its collaboration beyond supplying high-bandwidth memory (HBM) to encompass AI factories, hyperscale data centers, cloud platforms, and next-generation computing infrastructure. The overall value of the planned collaboration is projected to reach approximately $750 billion over the next five years.
The discussions took place during the K-AI Summit in San Francisco, where SK executives met with leaders from NVIDIA, Microsoft, Anthropic, and other global AI companies. The Group also held separate talks with Amazon Web Services (AWS) on expanding AI infrastructure and cloud collaboration in Korea.
NVIDIA remains the centerpiece of SK's AI strategy.
SK Group signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with NVIDIA to establish a comprehensive long-term partnership covering AI infrastructure, AI factories, and next-generation memory technologies.
As part of the initiative, SK Telecom plans to build a 2-gigawatt AI Factory, one of the largest AI computing facilities in Korea. The project will utilize NVIDIA's next-generation GPUs and full-stack AI Factory architecture while incorporating SK hynix's upcoming HBM4 memory to deliver high-performance computing capabilities for large-scale AI workloads.
The facility is designed to support not only large language model (LLM) training but also emerging applications such as AI inference, agentic AI, and Physical AI, all of which require increasingly powerful computing resources.
SK hynix will further strengthen its collaboration with NVIDIA by jointly developing advanced memory solutions optimized for AI training and inference. The companies also plan to enhance their supply chain to meet rapidly growing global demand for AI infrastructure.
The partnership reflects SK hynix's expanding role as one of the world's leading suppliers of high-bandwidth memory, a critical component for AI accelerators and next-generation data center systems.
Beyond NVIDIA, SK Group is broadening its relationships with major cloud and AI companies.
SK hynix is pursuing long-term supply agreements for AI server memory with Microsoft as hyperscale cloud providers continue to expand AI-focused data centers worldwide.
Meanwhile, SK Telecom signed a memorandum of understanding with Anthropic to jointly explore the development and operation of gigawatt-scale AI data centers in Korea.
The company also discussed broader cooperation with AWS, building on its experience developing AI data center infrastructure in Ulsan. The collaboration aims to combine SK Telecom's expertise in data center construction and operations with AWS's cloud and AI platform capabilities to secure large-scale computing resources for Korea's growing AI ecosystem.
Industry analysts view the initiative as a strategic shift from component supply toward full-scale AI infrastructure development.
Rather than focusing solely on semiconductor manufacturing, SK Group is integrating SK hynix's leadership in AI memory with SK Telecom's strengths in telecommunications, networking, and data center operations to create a comprehensive AI infrastructure platform.
The strategy reflects a broader industry trend in which competitive advantage is increasingly determined by access to computing power, energy, and large-scale AI infrastructure rather than software alone.
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won emphasized that the collaboration is intended to position Korea as a global AI innovation hub.
"Building on SK Telecom's AI infrastructure capabilities and SK hynix's AI memory technologies, we will work with NVIDIA to build one of the world's most advanced AI factories," Chey said. "Our goal is to help Korea become a leading global center for AI innovation."
With these partnerships, SK Group aims to evolve from a leading semiconductor supplier into a comprehensive AI infrastructure provider while strengthening Korea's competitiveness in the rapidly expanding global AI economy.
