SK Telecom accelerates expansion of its AI data center initiative to increase regional compute capacity.
SK Telecom announced plans to evolve into a comprehensive artificial intelligence data center (AIDC) developer and expand into the global market, with the strategy unveiled by newly appointed CEO Jung Jaihun at the SK AI Summit 2025. Under this strategy, SK Telecom will expand its Ulsan AI data center to a 1 GW-scale capacity, supported by energy-specialized solutions, as part of its ambition to make Korea Asia's leading AI hub. The company plans to replicate this model through additional AIDC sites and attract foreign investment into Korea's AI infrastructure.
In October 2025, SK Group signed an MoU to build a new AIDC in Korea's southwestern region, joining the existing hubs in Gasan and Ulsan. The company also plans to enter Southeast Asia, starting with Vietnam, where it will partner with SK Innovation to build an LNG-powered AIDC that uses cold energy for data-center cooling. Jung stated, "Following the launch of the Ulsan AIDC, global companies have begun recognizing SK Telecom's development capabilities. We are laying the foundation for South Korea to become Asia's AI infrastructure hub."
To accelerate expansion, SK Telecom has launched a long-term R&D partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), combining SKT's infrastructure expertise with AWS's global cloud technology. The company will also collaborate with Nvidia, the government, and academia to demonstrate AI-RAN technology. SK Telecom will acquire over 2,000 Nvidia RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell GPUs to build a manufacturing AI cloud, supporting AI transformation within SK Hynix. Jung emphasized that "leveraging nationwide infrastructure, telecom companies can uniquely bridge the gap between AIDC and on-device AI through Edge AI and AI-RAN."
SK Telecom aims to internalize AIDC development by handling design, construction, and operation, and plans to commercialize an AIDC solution package integrating four core technologies: out-rack solution for managing external systems including cooling, power, and security; clustering solution for optimizing interconnection between servers; in-rack solution for improving server-level efficiency; and energy solution for enhancing power and thermal management.
In its latest earnings statement, SK Telecom said its AI business grew 35.7% year-on-year in the third quarter, with the AIDC unit generating KRW 149.8 billion ($104.7 million) in revenue, supported by the Pangyo Data Center acquisition and the GPU leasing support program. To accelerate its transition toward an AI-centered business model, SK Telecom recently announced plans to consolidate its previously distributed AI operations under a new AI company-in-company (AI CIC) structure.