Seoul forum follows a 2023 bilateral working group on AI cooperation
The 「Korea-UAE AI Infrastructure and Semiconductor Investment Forum」 was held at the Grand InterContinental Hotel in Gangnam-gu, Seoul on May 13.(Photo=The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy)
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Science and ICT, and the Presidential Committee on National AI Strategy held the 「Korea-UAE AI Infrastructure and Semiconductor Investment Forum」 at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas on May 13.
Following the state visit to the UAE in January 2023, a working group comprising government bodies and private companies from both nations was formed. This group has been discussing cooperation across the AI ecosystem, including AI infrastructure, models, and services. This forum was held to translate these discussions into tangible results.
For this investment forum, a 25-member delegation of key figures from the UAE visited Korea. The delegation was led by H.E. Mohamed Abdul Rahman AlHawi, Vice Minister of Investment, and included representatives from various institutions such as the UAE’s state-owned AI company Core42, MGX, the UAE government’s R&D institutions ATRC and TII, and investment bodies like Mubadala and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. H.E. Abdulla Saif Al Nuaimi, the UAE Ambassador to Korea, also attended.
In a high-level meeting, the vice ministers of both countries highly praised each other’s AI policies and execution capabilities. They shared the view on the need to build a strategic cooperative relationship for the advancement of the AI ecosystem amidst the rapidly changing landscape of global competition surrounding AI.
In the subsequent high-level panel discussion, they discussed cooperative measures to maximize the capabilities and strengths of both countries, such as building and operating low-power, high-efficiency AI infrastructure linked with AI semiconductors like NPUs, and developing and demonstrating specialized services based on native language AI models.
In the afternoon session, domestic companies gave investment presentations in the fields of AI semiconductors, infrastructure, and AI technology, introducing their technologies and business models. Following this, through business presentations by domestic AI companies, business matching, and networking programs, they identified mutual areas of interest and discussed concrete plans for investment cooperation.
The government plans to conduct follow-up discussions to ensure that this investment forum does not end as a one-time exchange, but leads to tangible outcomes such as mutually complementary technological development and joint entry into overseas markets.
Ryu Je-myeong, 2nd Vice Minister of Science and ICT, stated, “AI competitiveness comes from the collective strength of the entire AI ecosystem, where AI semiconductors, data centers, models, and services are organically connected.” He added, “By combining the strengths of both countries—Korea’s competitive AI ecosystem and the UAE’s investment capacity and strategic location connecting to the global AI market—we will specify cooperation models that lead to tangible results, such as demonstrating low-power, high-efficiency AI data centers and participating in the UAE’s Stargate AI data center campus project, and we will continue to support the expansion of market entry opportunities for companies from both nations.”
Kim Seong-yeol, Director General for Industrial Growth at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, remarked, “Competitiveness in the AI era is secured when the capability to not only equip AI infrastructure well but also to actually apply it in industrial fields is combined.” He continued, “By merging the UAE’s strategic investment capabilities and large-scale project execution power with Korea’s AI semiconductor, data center, and manufacturing capabilities, we will discover practical cooperation opportunities in AI infrastructure and industrial AI, and actively support the expansion of this cooperation to the global market in the future.”
Song Sang-hoon, Head of the Support Team for the Presidential Committee on National AI Strategy, stated, “Despite the unstable international situation, our two countries have communicated closely through the ‘Korea-UAE AI Cooperation TF’ centered around the Committee, and this forum is highly significant as the first fruit of our collaboration so far.” He added, “The Committee will also support follow-up discussions with relevant ministries to ensure that the cooperative tasks discussed at this forum lead to concrete investments and projects.”
H.E. Mohamed Abdul Rahman AlHawi, UAE Vice Minister of Investment, said, “The UAE and the Republic of Korea have been building a future-oriented partnership based on a shared vision to lead future industries.” He added, “Cooperation between our two countries has been gaining strong momentum, spurred by the UAE’s announcement in 2023 of a $30 billion investment commitment in the Republic of Korea.” He mentioned, “Innovative cooperation cases in energy and AI, such as the key role played by the Republic of Korea in the Abu Dhabi Barakah Nuclear Power Plant project and its participation in the UAE’s Stargate AI data center campus project, are further solidifying the cooperative relationship between our two nations.” Furthermore, he stated, “These flagship projects are already generating tangible results that are strategically important for both countries, and I expect this visit will be an important opportunity to expand our bilateral cooperation across the entire AI value chain.”
Kim Eun-jin
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