Major AI Data Centre Project in South Korea Announced
SEOUL: A groundbreaking venture was unveiled on Tuesday as a US startup backed by Nvidia, Reflection AI, in collaboration with South Korean retail powerhouse Shinsegae Group, revealed plans to establish what is projected to be South Korea’s largest artificial intelligence data centre.
The initiative was lauded by the Trump administration as a notable achievement for its AI export strategy amidst growing competition with China in this rapidly evolving technological arena.
Reflection AI, a New York-based startup, alongside Shinsegae Group, disclosed that the data centre would possess an impressive energy capacity of 250 megawatts.
As reported by local media such as The Chosun Ilbo, this ambitious project is set to become the foremost data centre in the nation, dedicated to operating AI systems that underpin various applications, including chatbots and image generators.
According to the companies, the facility will be outfitted with servers engineered by the US tech giant Nvidia, catering to businesses throughout South Korea.
The announcement, released early Tuesday morning in Seoul, emphasized the provision of “fully sovereign frontier capabilities built and operated on home soil.”
The emergence of sovereign AI has garnered attention from numerous nations eager to mitigate reliance on foreign platforms while adhering to local regulatory frameworks, especially concerning data privacy.
Jacob Helberg, the US Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, praised the collaboration on X, asserting that “the nations that will shape the future of AI governance are the ones constructing the infrastructure at present.”
“America’s responsibility is to ensure our allies are developing it collaboratively with us,” he added.
South Korea, home to significant memory chip manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, has articulated its ambition to vie with the United States and China in becoming one of the top three AI superpowers.
“We are establishing AI infrastructure that the Republic of Korea can govern, evaluate, and develop independently,” stated Misha Laskin, CEO and co-founder of Reflection AI.
Founded in 2024, Reflection AI is part of a consortium spearheaded by Nvidia aimed at propelling frontier-level AI advancements.
Reema Bhattacharya, head of Asia Research at Verisk Maplecroft, pointed out to AFP that “from Washington’s perspective, agreements of this nature help fortify partner ecosystems and diminish reliance on China.”
However, she noted that most Asian governments appear reluctant to become ensnared in such a dichotomy.
“In reality, this implies that countries will strategically balance US partnerships according to their own conditions while making necessary concessions to China to maintain stable relationships,” she remarked.
Bhattacharya further explained that complete AI self-sufficiency is “not a feasible objective for most Asian countries in the short term.”
“What is emerging instead is a pragmatic focus on minimizing vulnerabilities within an ecosystem heavily influenced by US and Chinese dominance in technology, components, and expertise.” – AFP
Source link: Thestar.com.my.
