OpenAI founder Altman visits Korea

[Anchor]

When the U.S. announced the launch of the large-scale AI investment project 'Stargate,' the person standing on the far right of the screen is Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT.

Just a week after this announcement, as the shock of China's DeepSeek was conveyed, Altman embarked on a frantic global journey to maintain AI leadership.

First, he visited Japan to meet with SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son, a co-investor in Stargate, and immediately came to Korea today (Feb. 4) to meet with SK Chairman Chey Tae-won and announced a collaboration with Kakao.

He then had a surprise meeting with Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and SoftBank Chairman Son, discussing Samsung's investment in Stargate.

Our reporter Hwang Jeong-ho covers Altman's aggressive moves.

[Report]

The highlight of Sam Altman's hectic schedule in Korea was the three-way meeting with SoftBank Chairman Son and Samsung's Lee Jae-yong.

Chairman Son arrived in Korea this morning, and during the meeting, the three discussed Samsung's Stargate investment for over an hour.

However, no specific investment plans were announced yet.

[Masayoshi Son/Chairman of SoftBank Group: "We will discuss. We had very good discussions."]

It is evaluated that the foundation for a 'Korea-U.S.-Japan AI alliance' has been established to seize the leadership in the global AI market.

In particular, as this is Lee Jae-yong's first public activity since the legal risk was resolved with the acquittal in the appeals court, there are observations that Samsung's investment in Stargate is imminent.

This visit to Korea could accelerate investments from domestic companies.

[Sam Altman/Founder of OpenAI: "I don't want to preannounce anything buy you can probably guess what some of the most important partnerships are there."]

Before the three-way meeting, Sam Altman introduced OpenAI's latest technology, stating that he would launch a joint product for Korean users in collaboration with Kakao.

[Chung Shina/Kakao CEO: "The development of a joint product means..."]

[Sam Altman/Founder of OpenAI: "Our mission is to maximize the benefits of AGI for everybody, and we'd love to do that partnership."]

After discussing the production of high-performance AI semiconductors with SK's Chey Tae-won, he expressed that it was "amazing" and showed expectations for a stable semiconductor supply.

Sam Altman's visit to Korea was a frantic effort by the United States to secure friendly partners to maintain AI hegemony.

KBS News, Hwang Jeong-ho.