On Wednesday, AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su made South Korean AI chips the central topic of cooperation talks in Seoul, exploring how to combine Korean AI chips with AMD processors to build systems for the global market.
Su met with Second Vice Minister of Science and ICT Ryu Je-myung and executives from 13 South Korean AI companies to discuss pairing AMD central processing units and graphics processing units with Korean neural network processors designed specifically for AI inference.
The two sides will carry out demonstration projects in South Korea to test the system and form solutions for overseas deployment. The partnership is expected to expand AMD's AI inference offerings while helping Korean chipmakers connect with global customers, further challenging NVIDIA (NVDA) in the AI computing sector.
"I am very bullish on open ecosystems," Su said, adding that South Korea is an important partner for advancing artificial intelligence and expanding AI applications globally.
The talks reflect how AI competition is shifting toward complete computing systems that integrate chips, software and cloud infrastructure. Participants also discussed connecting to AMD's open-source ROCm software ecosystem, which competes with NVIDIA's (NVDA) CUDA platform.
Ryu said AMD's global channels combined with Korean companies' technological strength can spawn new AI technologies and businesses, helping South Korea's AI chip industry expand.
In July, during President Lee Jae-myung's visit to San Francisco for an AI summit, AMD signed a cooperation agreement with South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT. This roundtable is a follow-up to implement that agreement. Returning to South Korea after seven months, Su reiterated plans to establish an AI Center of Excellence in the country before the end of the year, recruiting hundreds of researchers.
The ministry said AMD will provide hardware for the center, with the location not yet finalized. AMD will also continue to support graduate-level AI talent development.
Su said AMD is investing local computing power for startups and other users, citing the first cloud infrastructure project with MangoBoost. She also mentioned a recent agreement with Seoul National University's AI research institute and pledged to expand cooperation with Korean universities and startups.
The roundtable brought together companies in AI chips, software and cloud services: FuriosaAI, HyperAccel, DeepX, Mobilint, MangoBoost, Panmnesia, Dnotitia, Moreh, Nota AI, Lablup, Fadu, Elice Group and Upstage.
Afterward, Su and Jack Huynh, AMD's Senior Vice President of the Computing and Graphics Business Group, attended an AMD gamer day event, showcasing gaming technology and gathering feedback from Korean gamers. She also plans to meet with Jun Young-hyun, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics and head of its semiconductor business.
During her visit to South Korea in March, Su met with Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and signed a cooperation agreement with Jun. AMD designated Samsung as the preferred supplier of HBM4 memory for its MI455X AI chip, and the two sides also discussed having Samsung manufacture AMD's future chips.
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