President Lee Meets Global Business Leaders First... Receives Major AI Investment Gift [Gyeongju APEC]

Discusses Investment Plans with AWS CEO
Additional $5 Billion Pledged for AI Center Construction
Secures $9 Billion in Advanced Industry Investments from Seven Global Corporate Leaders

On October 29, President Lee Jaemyung began his first official schedule during the highly anticipated Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Gyeongju by meeting with global economic leaders. At the APEC CEO Summit held at the Gyeongju Arts Center, President Lee delivered a special address and met with Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services (AWS), to discuss investment plans with the aim of making Korea one of the world's top three artificial intelligence (AI) powerhouses. President Lee also attended the Global Enterprise Investment Partnership event, where he was joined by Garman and representatives from seven global companies, announcing investment plans totaling 9 billion dollars (approximately 13 trillion won).

Yonhap News Agency

About 1,000 people attended the CEO Summit, including major Korean conglomerates such as Samsung Electronics, SK, Hyundai Motor, LG, and POSCO, as well as global companies like Meta, Deloitte, and TikTok. Korean economic organizations, including the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which organized the CEO Summit, and international organizations such as the World Bank (WB), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), and World Trade Organization (WTO), were also present and listened attentively to President Lee's special address.

Following the summit, President Lee met with CEO Garman at the Gyeongju Arts Center. Garman announced plans to invest more than 5 billion dollars by 2031, including the construction of new AI data centers in the Incheon and Gyeonggi regions. During the meeting, President Lee stated, "The Korean government is actively building an 'AI expressway' so that AI can be utilized anytime in industry and research fields, with the goal of becoming one of the world’s top three AI powerhouses. Amazon's decision to make additional large-scale investments in AI data centers will further accelerate the development of Korea's AI ecosystem."

President Lee added, "I hope Amazon will strengthen partnerships with Korean companies and develop various cooperation models as it carries out its business. The Korean government will also actively serve as a 'bridge to prosperity,' moving forward together with global business leaders."

After announcing a 4 billion dollar investment in an AI data center in Ulsan last June, Amazon has now unveiled another large-scale investment plan, setting a new record for the largest greenfield (production facility) investment in Korea’s history. The Office of the President explained, "This is a result of the high growth potential and IT competitiveness of Korea’s AI industry, as well as the government’s strong commitment to fostering the AI sector."

After the meeting, President Lee attended the 'Global Enterprise Investment Partnership' event alongside Garman and representatives from seven global companies. At this event, plans were announced to invest a total of 9 billion dollars over the next five years in advanced and core industries, including AI data centers, semiconductor packaging, automobiles, displays, medical devices, and batteries. The event was attended by seven company representatives: Matt Garman, Renault Korea CEO Nicolas Paris, Amkor Technology Korea CEO Lee Jin-an, Corning Korea CEO Van Hall, Air Liquide Korea CEO Nicolas Poirot, Siemens Healthineers Asia-Pacific Regional CEO Bui Tran, and Umicore Battery Division CEO Carina Cansilieri.

Yonhap News Agency

Nicolas Paris, CEO of Renault Korea, stated, "Based on our firm confidence in Korea's future mobility ecosystem, we plan to invest in converting the existing production line at the Busan plant to an electric vehicle line." Bui Tran, Asia-Pacific Regional CEO of Siemens Healthineers, announced, "With the vision of making Korea a global hub for ultrasound medical device production, we plan to expand the production line for cardiac ultrasound medical device components in Pohang."

The Office of the President commented, "This is also expected to make a significant contribution to stabilizing supply chains in Korea's advanced sectors," and added, "President Lee expressed his gratitude to the global company leaders who chose Korea as their optimal investment destination and reaffirmed the Lee Jaemyung administration’s strong support for foreign investment."