GYEONGJU – In a significant move to bolster South Korea’s artificial intelligence landscape, Nvidia, the renowned Silicon Valley chipmaker, is set to deliver a substantial number of its graphics processing units (GPUs) to South Korean enterprises and government initiatives. This collaboration aims to significantly enhance the nation’s AI infrastructure and technological capabilities.

Nvidia’s strategic plan was unveiled on Friday following discussions between President Lee Jae Myung and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. Joining this initiative are some of South Korea’s leading corporations, including tech giants Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and automotive leader Hyundai Motor.

Jensen Huang, who has been welcomed with enthusiasm akin to that once reserved for Apple’s Steve Jobs, arrived in South Korea on Thursday. His visit coincides with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum held in Gyeongju, where South Korea is leveraging the event to highlight its AI ambitions to an international audience.

As per statements from President Lee’s office and the involved companies, Nvidia plans to supply approximately 260,000 GPUs to enhance South Korea’s AI computing and manufacturing prowess.

Of these, roughly 50,000 GPUs are earmarked for a government-led initiative to establish a national AI cloud computing center. An equal number of GPUs will be allocated to Samsung and SK Hynix, empowering them to integrate AI into their manufacturing processes, thereby propelling the development of cutting-edge semiconductors.

Hyundai and Nvidia said they plan to collaborate on developing technologies related to self-driving cars, smart factories and robotics, a process that will be powered by 50,000 of Nvidia’s advanced Blackwell GPUs.

Santa Clara-based Nvidia, whose GPU chips power much of the global AI industry, featured in talks Thursday between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Gyeongju, where the leaders agreed to take steps to ease their escalating trade war.

Following the meeting, Trump said he discussed sales of computer chips to China. Trump and former President Joe Biden have imposed restrictions on China’s access to the most advanced chips, including those used for AI. Trump said China will speak with Nvidia about purchasing their chips, but not the company’s latest Blackwell AI chips.

In August, Trump announced a deal with Nvidia and AMD, another chipmaker, to lift export controls on sales of advanced chips to China in exchange for a 15% cut of the revenue, despite concerns among national security experts that such chips will end up in the hands of Chinese military and intelligence services.

Nvidia earlier this week confirmed that it has become the first $5 trillion company, just three months after the company broke through the $4 trillion mark. The milestone underscores the upheaval driven by the AI craze, widely seen as the biggest technological shift since Apple co-founder Jobs unveiled the first iPhone 18 years ago.

But there are also concerns over a potential AI bubble. Officials at the Bank of England warned earlier this month that tech stock prices fueled by the AI boom could collapse, and the head of the International Monetary Fund has issued a similar warning.

Hundreds of people, including reporters, gathered at a restaurant in southern Seoul on Thursday as Huang, dressed casually in a black T-shirt just hours after arriving in South Korea, shared fried chicken and beer with Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Hyundai Motor Executive Chair Euisun Chung. The tech executives clinked glasses, took bomb shots, and at one point, Huang stepped outside to hand baskets of chicken and fried cheese to the crowd waiting outside.