Chairman of SK: The current cost of AI is too high and it is difficult for semiconductor supply to improve in the short term. He is most worried about geopolitical risks and funding issues
Choi Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, said: "The current costs related to artificial intelligence (AI) are too high, and all parties should work together to find technological breakthroughs and reduce related costs." On the 13th local time, Cui Taiyuan was a guest on the show and said: "Currently, semiconductor prices remain high and supply cannot be fully guaranteed, placing a heavy burden on the industry. There is a fixed delivery cycle for expanding production capacity, and this problem cannot be completely solved in the short term." In response to this current situation, Cui Taiyuan introduced the group's plan: As one of the three national super-large key projects promoted by the Korean government, SK will build an AI data center with a total scale of 15 GW in phases. Cui Taiyuan said: "We will focus on building a new AI data center that can generate Token computing power with lower operating costs and higher efficiency. We are currently communicating and negotiating with all partners on this." He also added: "When the group initially formulated a US$1 trillion investment plan, it did not expect that the business volume would expand to the current level. The explosion of the artificial intelligence industry has made this layout a reality. The AI industry costs a lot and must be supported by the construction of data centers of a certain size or above." When asked about the most worrying risk factors in the next five years (the group has set a target period for doubling memory chip production capacity), Cui Taiyuan named geopolitical risks and capital supply issues. He said: "Sudden geopolitical events can easily push up energy prices; if the AI industry encounters various unexpected impacts during its development, even if it is only a short-term impact, the industry will lose its growth momentum." Regarding funding, he said frankly: "The AI track requires huge amounts of continuous investment. Once the funding supply cannot keep up, the current strong industry development momentum will fade." Cui Taiyuan explained: "The reason why we are facing this kind of pressure is that the current artificial intelligence technology is not yet mature. It is expected that in about five years, AI technology will become mature and stable like children, and its reliability will be greatly improved. By then, it will significantly boost the production efficiency of the whole society and start a virtuous industrial cycle." At the same time, he also called on the South Korean government to introduce supporting supporting policies.