SK Chairman Chey Tae-won: "Ulsan Must Evolve into an 'AI Native City'"

SK and Ulsan Chamber of Commerce Host 'Ulsan Forum 2026'

Presenting a Vision for the Future: Manufacturing AX, Citizen AI, and Art

10,900 Participants—Record High, 5.7 Times Increase from Last Year

Chey Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group, has proposed the concept of an "AI Native City" as the future vision for Ulsan. His idea is to connect Ulsan's globally renowned manufacturing base with artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure to enhance industrial competitiveness, improve citizens' lives and societal issues through AI, and further increase the city’s appeal by integrating art.

Chaired by Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, he spoke about the future development direction of Ulsan in the AI era during the closing session of the '2026 Ulsan Forum' held on the 11th at Ulsan Exhibition Convention Center (UECO), Ulju-gun, Ulsan City. SK

On September 11, during the "2026 Ulsan Forum" held at the Ulsan Exhibition and Convention Center (UECO) in Ulju-gun, Ulsan, Chairman Chey stated, "The future city of Ulsan should take the form of an 'AI Native City.'" He proposed urban growth and solving social problems as the two pillars of development, emphasizing not only strengthening the assets and competitive edge of existing manufacturing with AI, but also that "if people living in Ulsan experience the AI era, they should be happier as a result."

This vision is closely linked to his direct visits to Ulsan’s key "AX" sites the previous day. On September 10, Chairman Chey inspected the construction site of the "SK AI Data Center Ulsan" and SK Innovation Ulsan CLX, examining AI infrastructure development and the application of AI at manufacturing sites. Through connecting AI infrastructure with real manufacturing environments, SK aims to realize its "AI Full-Stack Provider" strategy.

"Beyond Investment: Building Profitability in AI"

Taewoong Choi, Chairman of SK Group, is touring the exhibition hall of "WAVE 2026 (Ulsan World Future Industry Expo)" held in connection with the "2026 Ulsan Forum" at the Ulsan Exhibition & Convention Center (UECO) in Ulju-gun, Ulsan City on the 11th, directly experiencing the exhibition contents. SK

Chairman Chey also analyzed that competitive conditions in the AI industry are changing. To the previously emphasized "3S"—Speed, Scale, and Safety—he added business models and sustainability as new priorities.

He stressed that "the AI industry itself must be able to generate revenue and reinvest autonomously." Beyond the competition that requires massive resource input, the industry must create a self-sustaining structure where profits are made and reinvested. He explained that, looking forward, developing viable business models and ensuring long-term sustainability are emerging as key issues for the AI industry.

This awareness extended to strategies for acquiring data necessary for manufacturing AI. He emphasized that a data platform is essential to improve productivity through manufacturing AI, and that "the very act of collecting data must become a business model." He asserted that, rather than being limited to Ulsan or individual companies, it is necessary to secure data at scale, even from overseas if needed. He also warned that late market entry risks widening the gap with early movers.

The forum addressed tasks for spreading these concepts into real manufacturing sites. Lee Minwoo, policy chief at the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy, announced plans to turn process data and the expertise of skilled workers into AI learning assets and to expand validated AX models from individual factories to supply chains and industrial complexes. He reported that, as of the first half of this year, approximately 170 AI factories have been deployed nationwide, resulting in notable achievements such as a 30% increase in productivity and a 15% reduction in defect rates in key projects.

On-site experts identified standardizing manufacturing data and securing proof-of-concept infrastructure as immediate priorities. Ulsan City is promoting the establishment of an AI Proof-of-Concept Center linked to its core industries. At Ulsan CLX, a "dual brain operating system," which integrates AI that analyzes process and equipment data with the expertise of field engineers, has been established. Physical AI, such as quadruped robots and drones, is also being deployed for inspections of hazardous areas.

AI Agents for 1 Million Citizens... Expanding AX Beyond Factories

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group (seventh from the left), Mayor Kim Sangwook of Ulsan (eighth from the left), Chairman Lee Yoonchul of the Ulsan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (sixth from the left), and other key attendees are posing for a commemorative photo at the '2026 Ulsan Forum' held on the 11th at the Ulsan Exhibition and Convention Center (UECO) in Ulju-gun, Ulsan. SK

The "AI Native City" envisioned by Chairman Chey expands beyond factory floors to the everyday lives of citizens. He believes that, by understanding the needs of Ulsan’s approximately 1 million residents more precisely through AI agents, policy efficiency in areas like welfare and healthcare can be improved and social costs reduced.

Assuming that the city's annual budget is "about 6 trillion won," he suggested that accurately identifying citizens’ needs might allow Ulsan to achieve the same outcomes while spending "about 2 trillion won less." However, he underscored that protecting personal information must be the top priority whenever citizen data is utilized.

The "Everyone's AI" initiative exemplifies this approach. Yoo Kyung-sang, Head of the AI CIC at SK Telecom, introduced AI agents designed to provide personalized public and welfare benefits, daily life information, and to connect and perform administrative, transportation, medical, and educational services upon request. The forum also discussed utilizing AI to address local issues like industrial complex odors, traditional market parking and safety, and linking these problem-solving efforts to demonstration projects and business initiatives by startups.

Chairman Chey also reiterated his "Art Ulsan" concept, emphasizing that a city’s competitiveness is not achieved through technology and industry alone. By using factories and industrial facilities as "canvases" to add emotional value, he suggested that Ulsan could evolve from an industrial city into an "art-industrial city."

When meeting with reporters after the forum, Chairman Chey reflected on his tour of Ulsan CLX the day before, noting that "employees independently developed and demonstrated applications." He observed, "Just because there’s a smokestack doesn’t mean you’re not using AI. I believe the pace of AI adoption is accelerating rather quickly."

He also reported that the AI data center project is rapidly advancing. Regarding collaborations with global big tech companies, Chairman Chey said, "The progress is very rapid," adding, "Ulsan, in particular, has almost reached 900 megawatts." The "SK AI Data Center Ulsan," which is currently under construction with Amazon Web Services (AWS), is designed for 100 MW and aims to begin operations by the end of 2027. SK’s vision is to eventually expand the Ulsan AI Data Center to a gigawatt (GW) scale.

The Ulsan Forum, now in its fifth year, was initiated on Chairman Chey’s suggestion to jointly consider the future of Ulsan with the local community. This year, a record number of approximately 10,900 people—including local university students and citizens—participated both online and offline, a 5.7-fold increase from the previous year. The event was also linked with "WAVE 2026 (Ulsan World Future Industry Expo)" to broaden discussions with technology exhibitions and on-site demonstrations.

Chairman Chey emphasized, "The Ulsan Forum has clearly established itself as a continuous platform." He stressed the need to develop the forum into a venue where various thoughts and ideas are collected, concrete methodologies are pursued, and real implementation follows.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.