'Stargate Team' Arrived Before Altman... Follow-Up Talks on HBM, Infrastructure

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman visits Samsung, SK and others on a two-day, one-night trip
Project staff stayed in South Korea for preliminary talks
Visit believed to be for final review and decisions
Cooperation expands into power and infrastructure sectors

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman visited South Korea to discuss ways to cooperate with major local companies on AI infrastructure. With reports that OpenAI headquarters staff responsible for the Stargate Project, a large-scale AI infrastructure initiative, had met with Korean companies to discuss supply volumes and detailed terms ahead of his visit, attention is focused on whether the meetings will help turn plans for cooperation into concrete steps.

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and around 50 executives from major Samsung Group affiliates attend a meeting with Sam Altman at the Samsung Human Resources Development Center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on October 31. Samsung Electronics, Yonhap News Agency.

According to industry sources on Nov. 2, Altman recently visited South Korea for a two-day, one-night trip and discussed AI cooperation with Samsung and SK, among others. Following the two sides' formalization of their cooperation on the Stargate Project last October, they reportedly discussed follow-up tasks, including semiconductor supply and infrastructure development.

Last year, Samsung Electronics signed a letter of intent (LOI) with OpenAI to supply memory chips and launched infrastructure cooperation among its affiliates. SK Group also signed a strategic partnership and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on building an AI data center (AIDC) in southwestern Korea, while fleshing out SK hynix's plans to meet demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM). Both companies have aligned their efforts as key partners in the Stargate Project.

One point drawing attention alongside Altman's visit is the advance discussions held by OpenAI headquarters staff. Staff working on the Stargate Project recently stayed in South Korea and held a series of meetings with major local companies. They reportedly discussed contract sizes and supply terms required for actual infrastructure construction, moving beyond an initial review of the project's business viability.

"OpenAI staff come to Korea frequently, but this time they appear to have come to conduct a final review and make decisions on matters discussed at the U.S. headquarters," an industry source said. "They are at the stage of deciding on the actual contract sizes and details needed to begin building Stargate infrastructure in earnest, using the investment funds secured by OpenAI."

The staff reportedly also met with Samsung Electronics to strengthen the HBM supply chain, a key component of Stargate. "Despite recent concerns about recovering investments in AI data centers, I understand that OpenAI staff and Samsung Electronics, the world's largest memory chipmaker, have held in-depth discussions on HBM supply," another senior industry source said. "The meeting is likely to pave the way for broader semiconductor cooperation within the Stargate Project."

Industry observers are paying attention to the fact that Altman visited South Korea after staff had discussed specific business terms. The visit is seen as potentially adding momentum to follow-up talks aimed at reviewing cooperation plans discussed so far and translating them into actual supply and investment. As competition to expand AI infrastructure intensifies, the role of Korean companies with advanced memory and infrastructure manufacturing capabilities is also expected to grow.

Cooperation talks are expanding beyond memory semiconductors into power and infrastructure. Stargate requires both the construction of large-scale data centers and securing the power needed to run them. OpenAI staff reportedly also contacted Korean companies that generate power and supply related components and equipment, discussing potential cooperation and supply terms in various areas.

"Cooperation with OpenAI is being discussed regularly not only in semiconductors but also in components related to power infrastructure, including electricity generation," the industry source said. "As the Stargate Project moves forward, demand for related infrastructure continues to grow, and expectations among local companies for securing orders, as well as the scope of cooperation, are gaining momentum."

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