South Korean conglomerate SK Group plans to invest 2,100 trillion won, or about US$1.36 trillion, to strengthen the country’s AI infrastructure and semiconductor supply chain, according to Yonhap News Agency.

The announcement follows President Lee Jae Myung’s launch of the government’s “three megaprojects” initiative, which aims to support South Korea’s competitiveness in advanced technologies and to spread industrial development beyond the Seoul region.

As part of the plan, SK Group intends to invest 1,100 trillion won in an “AI memory production belt” linking the semiconductor cluster in Yongin, south of Seoul, with Cheongju and South Korea’s southwestern region.

The group also plans to establish a new SK hynix production base in the southwest, citing government efforts to expand supporting infrastructure such as electricity and water supply.

SK hynix is also targeting completion of the Yongin semiconductor cluster by 2033, bringing forward a project that had previously been expected to be completed by 2045.

The company said the accelerated timeline is intended to meet rising global demand for AI chips and strengthen supply chain resilience.

SK Telecom, the group’s mobile carrier, will also lead a 1,000 trillion won project to develop AI data centres with a combined power capacity of 15GW, according to Yonhap.

SK Group said South Korea’s power supply and AI chip manufacturing base could make the country a competitive location for large-scale AI data centre development.

The group’s Chairman Chey Tae-won told local press that the conglomerate wants to help South Korea move from being an AI consumer to becoming an exporter of AI capabilities. It would require building a domestic market for AI-based services and developing large-scale AI data centres, which he described as AI factories.

SK Group has been expanding its AI infrastructure footprint at home and overseas.

The group is involved in OpenAI’s Stargate initiative, alongside Samsung, and has partnered with Amazon Web Services to develop an AI data centre in Ulsan, South Korea.

It has also signed agreements in Vietnam to support the development of the country’s AI ecosystem and core digital infrastructure. The partnerships focus on AI data centres, power supply and linking infrastructure with industry applications as Vietnam looks to scale its AI capabilities.