At the SK AI Summit 2025, SK Telecom unveils plans for massive AI data centre expansion, global collaborations, and innovative edge AI technologies to elevate South Korea’s status as a major AI power in Asia.
SK Telecom has unveiled an ambitious roadmap for the evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in South Korea, positioning itself as a national leader in the AI sector. At the recent SK AI Summit 2025, held on June 3rd, newly appointed CEO Jung Jae...
Continue Reading This Article
Enjoy this article as well as all of our content, including reports, news, tips and more.
By registering or signing into your SRM Today account, you agree to SRM Today's Terms of Use and consent to the processing of your personal information as described in our Privacy Policy.
-heon outlined the company’s strategic vision for advancing AI data centre (DC) infrastructure and pioneering AI technologies, signalling a robust expansion that could elevate South Korea as Asia’s foremost AI hub.
Central to SK Telecom’s future plans is the significant expansion of the Ulsan AI Data Center (AI DC), which the company intends to grow to a scale exceeding 1 gigawatt (GW). This expansion is not only a technological upgrade but also a strategic move to attract global investment and foster the creation of additional AI DC hubs modeled after Ulsan. The aim is to establish a triad of AI DC bases across South Korea—spanning the Seoul metropolitan area, Gyeongnam, and the southwestern region—further solidifying the country’s infrastructure footprint in the AI domain. According to SK Telecom’s announcement, these efforts are integral to their vision of positioning South Korea as Asia’s largest AI hub.
This ambitious infrastructure expansion is backed by extensive collaboration with global technology leaders such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) and NVIDIA. SK Telecom’s partnership with AWS, formalised through a memorandum of understanding with OpenAI last October, underpins the establishment of the Ulsan AI DC. This centre, expected to initially operate at 40 megawatts by 2027 with plans to increase capacity to 100 megawatts in the subsequent years, will leverage GPU-based high-density servers. This makes it a cornerstone facility in South Korea’s quest to become a top-three global AI powerhouse. AWS’s involvement extends beyond infrastructure provisioning, encompassing joint research and development efforts to advance ‘Edge AI’ and AI-based intelligent network technologies (AI-RAN).
Edge AI, a technological innovation championed by SK Telecom, processes data locally at base stations and edge servers rather than relying solely on cloud-based computation, thereby enhancing real-time responsiveness, data security, and network efficiency. The company has established an R&D partnership with AWS to accelerate the commercialisation of Edge AI in South Korea. This initiative taps into SK Telecom’s comprehensive nationwide telecommunications infrastructure, which is increasingly viewed as a critical asset in the evolving AI ecosystem. Additionally, SK Telecom has signed a memorandum of understanding with NVIDIA, the South Korean government, and academic institutions to collaborate on AI-RAN technology, envisaged as a next-generation intelligent network fundamental to the proliferation of manufacturing AI.
On the manufacturing front, SK Telecom is set to develop a ‘manufacturing AI cloud’ equipped with over 2,000 NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 GPUs. This facility will support AI-driven innovations in digital twins, robotic automation, and other advanced manufacturing techniques primarily for SK Group’s manufacturing subsidiaries, including SK hynix. According to SK Telecom’s CEO, this cloud infrastructure will be key to accelerating AI adoption across industrial production processes in Korea, fostering efficiency and innovation.
Furthermore, SK Telecom and SK Group plan to expand their AI data centre footprint globally, commencing with Southeast Asia. The group’s energy-specialised AI DC solutions, developed in tandem with SK Innovation, are tailored for markets like Vietnam, where stable power is ensured via LNG power plants and innovative cooling solutions using cryogenic energy are planned for data centre operations. This model is slated for extension to countries such as Malaysia and Singapore, underpinning SK Group’s strategy to globalise its AI infrastructure prowess.
SK Telecom is also evolving from an infrastructure provider to an integrated AI DC solution provider, managing design, construction, and operations comprehensively. The company aims to productise its AI DC solution package by internalising core AI infrastructure technologies and collaborating with global leaders, thus enabling faster and cost-efficient deployment of AI infrastructure.
Over the past year, SK Telecom has recorded several milestones reinforcing its AI leadership, including the construction of the largest domestic GPU cluster ‘Haein’ based on B200 architecture, the launch of a proprietary AI foundation model selected by South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT, and surpassing 10 million users on its AI platform ‘A. Dot’.
CEO Jung emphasized the strategic importance of AI infrastructure as a core driver of corporate and national competitiveness. He reaffirmed SK Telecom’s commitment to working closely with the government to advance South Korea’s emergence as a leading global AI player, describing the company’s planned expansions and innovations as laying the groundwork for an ‘AI Infra Superhighway’ that will bolster AI development at scale within the country and across the Asia-Pacific region.
In summary, SK Telecom’s comprehensive AI infrastructure roadmap—spanning large-scale data centre expansions, cutting-edge AI network technologies, manufacturing AI cloud initiatives, and international market entries—reflects a coordinated effort to consolidate South Korea’s position as a major AI innovation hub. Supported by strategic global partnerships and integrated within the broader SK Group ecosystem, these plans mark a significant leap in the nation’s AI capabilities and economic potential.
Source: Noah Wire Services
