[Edaily Reporter Han Kwangbeom ] OpenAI is expanding its strategic partnerships with the South Korean government and major conglomerates, thereby solidifying a cooperative framework to help South Korea emerge as a global AI powerhouse.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, attended the “San Francisco AI Summit” on the 24th (local time) in San Francisco, following a one-on-one meeting with President Lee Jae-myung. CEO Altman continued discussions on AI infrastructure cooperation with SamsungElectronics and SK Group, exchanging views on South Korea’s AI vision and long-term collaboration plans.
OpenAI signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Science and ICT last October and has since been exploring ways to collaborate on the development of South Korea’s AI industry and the expansion of next-generation AI infrastructure. In particular, through strategic partnerships with SamsungElectronics(005930) and SK hynix(000660), the company is pushing to expand the production of cutting-edge memory semiconductors, positioning South Korea as a key partner in the global AI infrastructure led by OpenAI. OpenAI regards this collaboration as the first country-level partnership announced in the Asia-Pacific region.
The scope of the collaboration between OpenAI and South Korea is expanding beyond AI infrastructure development to accelerate AI transformation (AX) across the corporate, educational, and public sectors. SamsungElectronics has confirmed plans to roll out ChatGPT and Codex to all its employees. This is one of the largest corporate AI adoption initiatives by OpenAI worldwide. Seoul National University is also providing “ChatGPT Edu” to its entire community as it pushes forward with its transition to an AI-native organization.
In the public sector, Samsung has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with organizations such as the KoreaElectricPower Corporation, the Korea Water Resources Corporation, and the Korea Technology Finance Corporation to support their AI transformations. Furthermore, it has announced the “Korea Cyber Action Plan” to help the government, public institutions, and domestic companies access advanced AI cyber defense capabilities based on OpenAI’s cybersecurity initiative, “Daybreak,” and is also collaborating in the field of AI safety through an MOU with the AI Safety Research Institute.
A series of meetings with corporate leaders also took place. On the 24th (local time), CEO Altman met with SK Group Chairman Choi Tae-won and key executives from both companies to discuss AI infrastructure—including High-Bandwidth Memory (HBM) and DRAM—as well as SK Group’s AI transformation. Subsequently, on the morning of the 25th, he is scheduled to hold a meeting at OpenAI’s headquarters in San Francisco with SamsungElectronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and other key SamsungElectronics executives to discuss AI infrastructure—including HBM, DRAM, and advanced foundry capabilities—as well as ways to collaborate on SamsungElectronics’ AI transformation.
In his speech at the San Francisco AI Summit, CEO Altman also emphasized, “Within the next few years, AI will empower everyone around the world to shape a better future for themselves—by enabling the treatment of diseases and new scientific discoveries, creating new jobs, and allowing people to enjoy more free time,” adding, “The benefits of these changes must be shared by all.”
He went on to express strong support for the South Korean government’s “AI for All” vision, stating, “To achieve this, bold investment in AI infrastructure is necessary. The AI infrastructure projects South Korea is pursuing will not only greatly benefit the South Korean economy and its citizens but will also play a crucial role in propelling global AI to the next level.”
