SK to invest $58 bil. in AI, chips by 2026
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, on the screen, delivers an opening speech via video call during a management strategy conference with group affiliates at SKMS Research Institute in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, Friday. Courtesy of SK Inc.
SK Group plans to secure 80 trillion won ($58 billion) by 2026 to invest in AI and semiconductors, driven by the anticipated explosive global growth of the AI sector, Korea's second-largest business group said Sunday.
As part of the scheme, it will launch a semiconductor committee under SK Supex Council, a decision-making body of the group, and its chip unit SK hynix will invest 103 trillion won by 2028 to strengthen its edge and enhance synergy among group affiliates in AI and chip-related value chain.
The group drew up these plans during a two-day annual management strategy conference from Friday to Satursday, featuring top executives of its subsidiaries, to review the conglomerate's business operations and set future directions.
Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group who attended the meeting via video conference while on a business trip to the U.S., emphasized the need to secure future growth opportunities by focusing the group's capabilities on industries related to AI and semiconductors, which are displaying exponential growth.
“In this new transition era, preemptive and fundamental changes are necessary to prepare for the future,” Chey said.
“In the U.S., the wind of AI-related change is so strong that there's nothing to talk about except that. We need to strengthen our AI value chain leadership from AI services to infrastructure by utilizing the group's capabilities,” he added.
The chairman also forecast that the group will be able to gain opportunities for growth in the energy solution sector, where SK has strengths.
"In the green, chemical, and bio business sectors, our focus should be on achieving qualitative growth by carefully assessing market dynamics, enhancing technological competitiveness, making strategic choices, concentrating our efforts, and ensuring robust management practices," he said.
To focus on the AI and semiconductor sectors, SK will secure 80 trillion won by 2026 by improving profitability, optimizing its business structure and enhancing synergy, and invest the money into the AI and chip businesses, according to SK Inc., the holding company of the group.
SK Group intends to enhance its AI value chain and attain global competitiveness through investments in AI and semiconductors. This includes developing high-bandwidth memory (HBM), also known as AI memory chips, establishing AI data centers as essential infrastructure for the AI era, and offering AI services such as personal AI assistants.
SK hynix plans to invest 103 trillion won by 2028, with around 82 trillion won, or about 80 percent of the total, earmarked for AI fields such as HBM. Meanwhile, SK Group's mobile carrier, SK Telecom, and its internet service unit, SK Broadband, will jointly invest 3.4 trillion won over the next five years in the AI data center business.
The participating executives also decided to launch a semiconductor committee under SK Supex Council on July 1 to strengthen synergy between affiliates related to the AI and chip value chains. SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung will lead the committee.
Chey Chang-won, chairman of SK's Supex Council, underscored the critical importance of adhering rigorously to core principles, such as corporate compliance, during the business restructuring process, along with fostering active communication with stakeholders.
"We have clear goals such as qualitative growth, and there's nothing we can't achieve if we make steady efforts. We need to accelerate operational improvements currently underway in each company to meet the market's expectations and trust," he said.
Even after the management strategy meeting, SK Inc. said the group will continue to strengthen practical activities across each company by setting agenda items for discussion and key tasks at major management meetings, such as the Icheon Forum in August and the CEO seminar in October.
"The starting point and conclusion of this meeting is to secure sufficient groundwork for growth in preparation for big opportunities," a group spokesperson said. "We expect that future-oriented investments will have a positive impact on the national economy, in addition to enhancing our corporate value.”