Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, said, "Korea has a very good opportunity in terms of its industrial base and geopolitical position, and it is time for startups to take advantage of it," adding, "Nvidia is ready to cooperate."
Huang made the remarks Monday at the "Korea AI Ecosystem Reception" hosted by Nvidia at the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. "We have spent most of Nvidia's history with Korea. Korea rose to world-class levels in heavy industry, electronics, and then software, and now it is also the world's best in AI," he said.
Huang notably turned to Bae Kyung-hoon, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT, who attended the reception, and said, "You must invest in the startup ecosystem," and shared a "love shot" toast with Bae, in which the two crossed arms while drinking.
Bae, who took the podium after Huang, spoke about his meeting with Huang held just before the event. "We are buying a lot of graphics processing units (GPUs) from Nvidia," he said. "Nvidia also asked us to invest in Korea." He added, "CEO Huang sees Korea as a country with strengths in various industries, including manufacturing, and one that can have great potential when these are combined with AI. I hope our companies will become the protagonists in changing the world. (The government) will do its best to provide support."
The event was attended by officials from domestic startups, including Upstage, which has achieved unicorn status, as well as Nota, VESSL AI, RealWorld, and Lunit. This marks the first time Huang has met with domestic startups during a visit to Korea. The meeting is interpreted as an effort by Huang to expand Nvidia's ecosystem across the AI sector.
