President Lee Attends AI Global Cooperation Business Roundtable
"New Hope for Local Economy and Industry, Holds Special Significance"
Ulsan AI Data Center Expected to Play Essential Role as Premier Expressway and in Infrastructure Development
On June 20, President Lee Jaemyung attended the AI Global Cooperation Business Roundtable held at the Ulsan Convention Center and stated, "The reason I took the time to come here today is because it seems to be creating new hope for the local economy and industry." He added, "I believe this could become a model case showing that Korea's advanced technology industry is possible not only in the Seoul metropolitan area but also in the provinces."
President Lee placed particular emphasis on the significance of attracting a large-scale AI data center to a local area and highlighted the role of SK Group Chairman Chey Taewon. Chairman Chey said, "SK Group, together with Amazon Web Services (AWS), will officially announce the construction of the largest AI data center in Korea," and explained, "The Ulsan AI Data Center will serve as the best AI expressway and play an essential role in infrastructure development."
President Lee also expressed his expectations by mentioning the 'KOSPI 3000 era.' He said, "Today, I saw that the Korean stock index reached 2,999.1, and I hope that, with new expectations, it will surpass 3,000 points and move into a new era of growth." He added, "I hope this will be the starting point for the revival of Ulsan's economy and the blossoming of Korea's growth." In fact, on this day, the KOSPI surpassed the 3,000 mark during trading hours for the first time in three years and five months.
President Lee remarked, "Korea has achieved rapid growth so far, but now, as people say, we are at a critical turning point." He continued, "Depending on how we prepare, we could move into a new world or fall back again. I am confident that, with the great strength of our people, we will overcome this crisis and embrace a new era."
The 'Korea AI Expressway, Ulsan AI Data Center Launch Ceremony' was attended by Chairman Chey Taewon, Baek Junho, CEO of FuriosaAI, Jung Suna, CEO of Kakao, Lee Junhee, President of Samsung SDS, Seo Beomseok, CEO of Lunit, Bae Kyunghoon, Head of LG AI Research Institute, Kim Yuwon, CEO of Naver Cloud, and Cho Joonhee, President of the Korea AI·SW Association. From the presidential office, Policy Chief Kim Yongbeom, Chief of Economic Growth Ha Junkyung, and Chief of AI Future Planning Ha Jongwoo accompanied the president. From the cabinet, Minister of Science and ICT Yoo Sangim and Minister of Industry Ahn Deokgeun were present. National Assembly Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee Chairperson Choi Minhee and Ulsan Mayor Kim Dukyum also attended.
At the roundtable, discussions were held on topics such as attracting foreign investment, global AI collaboration and expansion, and securing global competitiveness. A total of 12 participants, including Mayor Kim Dukyum and Chairman Chey Taewon, as well as CEO Baek Junho, took part as panelists. After the roundtable, President Lee observed demonstrations of AI products and services and attended the launch ceremony for the Ulsan AI Data Center.
Since his presidential campaign, President Lee has presented a vision to elevate Korea into one of the 'top three AI powers.' In particular, during his campaign, he pledged to promote a combined government and private investment of 100 trillion won in the AI sector over five years and to establish a system connecting AI infrastructure nationwide. His strategy is to decentralize computing resources and data centers, which are concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area, and to expand the foundation for AI utilization by linking it with regional industries. The concept of the so-called 'Korea AI Expressway' was born from this intention.
The Ulsan AI Data Center is a representative example. Ulsan, a region with a strong manufacturing base, has attracted attention as an area where an AI data center will be established in connection with industrial complexes, leading industrial innovation by combining manufacturing big data with AI. SK Group recently announced a plan to invest several trillion won, in partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), to build a 100MW-scale AI data center in Ulsan. The Ministry of Science and ICT also announced that it would invest a budget of 16.0761 trillion won in the AI sector over the next five years, focusing 12.3 trillion won of that amount on making Korea one of the world's top three AI powers. The core of the plan is to secure 50,000 advanced graphics processing units (GPUs) and construct AI data centers to build the 'AI Expressway.'
President Lee also introduced the concept of 'Sovereign AI,' aimed at avoiding technological dependence. This strategy seeks to develop indigenous large-scale AI models trained on Korean language and data, thereby establishing an independent AI ecosystem without relying on foreign platforms. Sovereign AI is attracting attention as a next-generation growth strategy because it is directly linked to securing national technological sovereignty, beyond mere technology development. Accordingly, President Lee plans to create a new position of Chief of AI Future Planning in the presidential office and to strengthen public-private cooperation by appointing private-sector experts. In addition, fostering AI startups, nurturing talent, expanding regulatory sandboxes, and establishing AI-specialized cities are also being promoted as key tasks.
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