Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is repeatedly meeting with Korean startups during his back-and-forth schedule between Korea and Taiwan. The approach differs from his visit to Korea last year, when he focused on meetings with conglomerate chairmen. The shift is interpreted as a strategic move to instill a sense of solidarity in growing companies and draw them into the Nvidia ecosystem as loyal members.
According to industry sources on Wednesday, Nvidia will host a private roundtable on the evening of December 8 at the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, gathering domestic artificial intelligence (AI) companies. Huang himself will attend the event, with Nvidia inviting a range of companies from large corporations to early-stage startups. Among the startups invited are Nota (486990), Realworld, Upstage, Aim Intelligence, Konfig, and Trillion Labs. In its invitation, Nvidia said it had "prepared a private event to celebrate the innovative companies leading Korea's AI industry."
Beyond corporate executives, a Korean humanoid robot also received a surprise invitation. The robot is "Alex," a humanoid being developed by robotics startup Wirobotics. Alex, whose upper body has been completed, was first unveiled in August last year. Wirobotics plans to demonstrate Alex in operation at the venue. Wirobotics CEO Kim Yong-jae is expected to personally present the Alex demonstration in front of Huang. An industry source hinted that "Alex will be used in a private demonstration during Huang's visit to Korea."
Earlier, Huang also met directly with Korean startups at the GTC Taipei 2026 event held in Taipei, Taiwan. On December 1 local time, Nvidia hosted a private event called "Korea Partner Night" at a restaurant in Taipei. Korea Partner Night was an exchange event to which Nvidia invited executives from major Korean clients and partner companies, with several startups also attending. At the event, Kim Joon-ha, CEO of Diden Robotics; Shin Jeong-kyu, CEO of Lablup; Ryu Jung-hee, CEO of Realworld; and Shin Jae-min, CEO of Trillion Labs, were invited by Nvidia and met with Huang. Huang reportedly emphasized the importance of the Korean market to the startup CEOs multiple times during the gathering.
Startups have reacted with surprise to seeing several Korean startups participate in Huang's schedule. When news of Huang's visit to Korea first emerged last month, startups had not yet been invited to Nvidia's events. As a result, most predictions assumed meetings would center on large corporations, as was the case last year. When Huang visited Korea in October last year to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, he met with only a small number of conglomerate chairmen, including Samsung Electronics (005930) Chairman Jay Y. Lee, Hyundai Motor (005380) Group Executive Chairman Euisun Chung, and SK (034730) Group Chairman Tae-won Choi.
Nvidia's changed approach offers a glimpse of how Korean startups hold significant value in the AI ecosystem Nvidia is envisioning. The calculation is that collaboration with Korean startups will help reinforce Nvidia's industry leadership, which spans graphics processing units (GPUs) and various AI software. In particular, Nvidia views the Korean startup industry as a potential ally that can broaden the base of its development ecosystem through the creation of various AI services. The invitation of diverse businesses—including AI model development, robot manufacturing, and security solutions—to the December 8 private event aligns with this context.
"Korea is one of the countries leading AI industry trends, given its high per-capita AI usage and significant potential for developing distinctive AI services," said Cho Yeo-jun, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) at The Ventures. "From Nvidia's perspective, with its China business facing difficulties, Korea is being viewed as a key location for cultivating Nvidia's AI ecosystem." Cho added, "With the strategic value of Korean companies on the rise, it is also time to think about how to gain the upper hand in negotiations with Nvidia."
