[CES2022] SK Square, Telecom, Hynix Launch 'ICT Alliance'... 50 Billion KRW Joint Investment to Target AI Semiconductor Market

Establishment of US Corporation SAPEON Inc.
Expansion of SKT's Proprietary 'Sapeon' Business
Promotion of ICT Investment Capital Formation and Operation Exceeding 1 Trillion KRW

Park Jung-ho, Vice Chairman of SK Square, is holding a press conference in Las Vegas, USA, where CES 2022 was held, and announcing the vision of the 'SK ICT Alliance.'
[Photo by SK Telecom]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] SK Square, SK Telecom, and SK Hynix, the three ICT companies of SK Group, have launched the 'SK ICT Alliance' to jointly develop convergence technologies, invest, and pursue global expansion. As their first achievement, the three companies have invested 50 billion KRW to establish a U.S. subsidiary (SAPEON Inc.) and are accelerating the global market entry of 'Sapeon,' the first domestically developed AI semiconductor for data centers by SK Telecom.

The representatives of the three SK ICT companies held a press briefing for Korean journalists at CES 2022, the world's largest electronics and IT exhibition held in Las Vegas on the 8th (local time), to formalize this plan. For the investment in establishing the U.S. subsidiary, SK Telecom will contribute 62.5%, SK Hynix about 25%, and the remainder will be covered by SK Square.

Park Jung-ho, Vice Chairman of SK Square and SK Hynix, explained, "It has been 10 years since SK Hynix joined SK Group, and it has made remarkable progress in all areas of memory system semiconductors. Also, with the split of SK Telecom and the birth of SK Square, a corporate structure capable of creating synergy connecting semiconductors, telecommunications, and investments has been established, leading to the launch of the three-company alliance."

Starting this year, under the leadership of Vice Chairman Park, the three companies will operate a '3-Company Synergy Council' involving Yoo Young-sang, President of SK Telecom, and Lee Seok-hee, President of SK Hynix. This is the highest decision-making body that discusses R&D cooperation in the semiconductor and ICT fields domestically and internationally, joint investments, and promotes global expansion. The three companies plan to jointly pursue business based on SK Square's innovative investments, SK Telecom's 5G and AI technologies, and SK Hynix's future semiconductor innovation technologies.

SAPEON Inc. will serve as a control tower mainly targeting global big tech companies based in the U.S. as its primary customers to expand the AI semiconductor business. The three companies also plan to attract investments from overseas investors to raise and manage over 1 trillion KRW in global ICT investment capital. They are currently in detailed discussions with leading overseas investors. The investment destinations of this capital are expected to be companies possessing innovative technologies in AI, metaverse (extended virtual world), blockchain, and semiconductor fields.

Executives from SK Square, SK Telecom, and SK Hynix are holding a press conference and conducting a Q&A session in Las Vegas, USA, where CES 2022 took place. From left to right: Park Jung-ho, Vice Chairman of SK Square; Ryu Soo-jung, Head of AI Accelerator at SK Telecom; Yoo Young-sang, President of SK Telecom; Lee Seok-hee, President of SK Hynix; Noh Jong-won, President of SK Hynix; Yoon Poong-young, CIO of SK Square.
[Photo by SK Telecom]

Commitment to Cooperation with Qualcomm Across All ICT Fields
SK Hynix Executes 'Inside America' Strategy

The representatives of the three SK ICT companies met with Cristiano Amon, President of Qualcomm, at this CES and agreed to expand cooperation beyond 5G to all ICT fields including semiconductors and metaverse. SK Hynix plans to explore joint development of high-speed memory for data center applications and PCs with Qualcomm. SK Telecom discussed cooperation and investment plans for 5G-related B2C and B2B transactions, including metaverse and smart factory businesses.

Vice Chairman Park said, "The Qualcomm CEO expressed a desire to jointly pioneer the market ecosystem as chips are incorporated into new devices like vehicles and Oculus. He also mentioned that Qualcomm is actually working on AI accelerators in the AI chip field, and that mutual complementarity is possible in that area."

SK Hynix is implementing the 'Inside America' strategy in the world's largest ICT market, the U.S. This is a plan to strengthen business competitiveness and expand new partnerships. They will establish a North American business organization and build a North American R&D center.

SK Square presented a plan to enhance the synergy of the three SK ICT companies through innovative investments. While leading joint investments in the semiconductor ecosystem of SK Hynix, they will also expand investments in 'next platforms' that will drive future innovations such as metaverse and blockchain. Additionally, they plan to enter the global blockchain new business sector linked with the recently invested virtual asset exchange Korbit, and support building a blockchain-based economic system on SK Telecom's metaverse platform 'ifland.'

Vice Chairman Park emphasized, "CEOs in the ICT industry expect a fully digital and converged world to arrive within 10 years." He added, "Although SK does not have handsets (mobile devices such as phones), it has strengths in core elements such as semiconductors and services that lead insights. The SK ICT Alliance will unite its strengths to make this year a great leap and innovation in the global market."