Lee meets OpenAI and Nvidia CEOs, calls for greater roles in AI projects
San Francisco, July 25
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung met with the heads of four global tech giants, including Nvidia Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang, and called for their greater participation in South Korea's artificial intelligence investment plans.
The meetings took place on the first day of Lee's two-day trip to San Francisco aimed at promoting AI investment and cooperation between global tech giants and South Korea, reports Yonhap news agency.
Lee also met separately with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Anthropic PBC CEO Dario Amodei and Broadcom Inc. CEO Hock Tan.
During his meeting with Huang, the South Korean president praised him as being at the forefront of a "fundamental shift" taking place around the world and introduced South Korea's recently announced large-scale investment plans to build a semiconductor production cluster and AI data centers.
The plans aim to provide further momentum after growing global demand for semiconductors amid the AI boom has helped push South Korean into becoming one of the world's major chip supply hubs.
Lee expressed hope that the Nvidia CEO will play a greater role in South Korea's investment drive, saying the projects will help transform the country into an AI-driven society.
Huang underscored what he called South Koreans' enthusiasm for AI, stressing that the country has entered a golden era under Lee's leadership.
The president responded by highlighting his pledge to make South Korea a global leader in applying AI to the real world.
In a separate meeting with Altman, the president again stressed his government's push to transform the country's industrial structure around AI, adding that he enjoys using OpenAI's ChatGPT.
He also asked Altman to play a greater role in South Korea's investment plans, while Altman described South Korea as one of the world's most important countries in AI development.
Meeting Amodei, Lee asked for his special attention to South Korea's AI sector.
The president said, "As South Korea plans to significantly expand investment in the AI sector, I hope for Anthropic's special attention, investment and contributions."
Amodei thanked Lee, noting the South Korean government's priority on AI, and said he expects a wide range of cooperation with South Korea.
He said Anthropic places the highest priority on cooperation with other companies and expressed hope for cooperation with South Korea in various areas, including data centres.
Amodei said his company and South Korea's science ministry will sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in AI security and the cyber industry.
During a separate meeting with the Broadcom CEO, the South Korean president again called for the company's help and support for South Korea's push to establish an AI ecosystem.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Lee meeting Sam Altman and praising ChatGPT is clever diplomacy. South Korea positioning itself as an AI hub while leveraging its semiconductor strength. But I wonder about the data privacy implications - Anthropic focuses on AI safety, which is good, but we need similar safeguards in India's AI policies too.
Interesting to see South Korea's proactive approach. The semiconductor cluster and AI data center investment plans are ambitious. As someone who's worked in tech, I can say execution is key - building the infrastructure is one thing, but creating an AI ecosystem requires talent development and regulatory support too.
South Korea's chip supply dominance gives them leverage in these negotiations. India's semiconductor mission (like the Micron plant in Gujarat) is good but we lack the scale. Lee getting commitments from Nvidia, OpenAI, and Anthropic shows how nations are competing for AI supremacy. We need similar high-level diplomatic pushes.
The AI safety MoU with Anthropic is noteworthy. As AI becomes more powerful, international cooperation on safety standards is crucial. South Korea seems to be balancing economic growth with responsible development. India should explore similar partnerships, especially given our huge data pool and diverse use cases.
Lee's trip shows how AI is reshaping geopolitics. South Korea leveraging its chip manufacturing to attract AI companies is smart. But I'm skeptical - these CEOs are praising everyone for investment. India should focus on creating our own AI models (like Bhashini) rather than just being a market for foreign tech.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.