Science minister Bae Kyung-hoon said at a parliamentary hearing in Seoul on Wednesday that the three companies are preparing to start construction. Reuters reported that SK Telecom is currently in talks with OpenAI to build a data centre in southwestern South Korea, but the construction timeline is still under review.
The news follows South Korea’s confirmation in October 2025 that OpenAI planned to set up joint ventures with both Korean companies to build two data centres with an initial capacity of 20 megawatts (MW). As part of OpenAI’s Stargate initiative, the strategic partnerships are aimed at expanding infrastructure critical to AI development – both globally and in South Korea.
In addition to expanding data centre capacity, these partnerships were designed to focus on increasing the supply of advanced memory chips – which are currently in short supply – in addition to positioning Samsung and SK Telecom as critical contributors to the global AI infrastructure market.
Speaking at the time, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said: “Korea has all the ingredients to be a global leader in AI – incredible tech talent, world-class infrastructure, strong government support and a thriving AI ecosystem.
“We’re excited to work with Samsung Electronics, SK hynix and the Ministry of Science and ICT through our global Stargate initiative to support Korea’s AI ambitions.”
South Korea has strong ambitions to become a leading global AI nation. Politico recently reported that South Korea has the second-highest number of paid ChatGPT users in the world, just behind the US. The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry reported 56% of Koreans use AI in their work.
The country is also set to build one of the world’s largest AI data centres, with a planned capacity of three gigawatts (GW) and an initial annual revenue of $3.5 billion. The project is being led by Fir Hills, part of Stock Farm Road (SFR) in partnership with the Jeollanam-do provincial government and aims to drive technological leadership and economic growth, creating over 10,000 jobs across energy supply, renewable energy production, equipment supply and R&D.
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