OpenAI seeks Samsung, SK amid chip shortage

OpenAI's efforts to expand its artificial intelligence infrastructure are facing growing pressure from tight memory chip supplies and rising funding requirements, increasing the importance of its partnerships with South Korea's Samsung and SK groups, according to a news report by The Korea Herald.

The report said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's visit to South Korea over the weekend highlighted the challenges facing the company as it seeks to secure sufficient memory chips and raise billions of dollars to support its AI infrastructure expansion.

Altman met around 50 Samsung executives in Yongin on Saturday before holding discussions with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and executives from SK hynix and SK Telecom. At Samsung, discussions focused on using AI to improve business competitiveness.

"Simply using AI will no longer be enough to secure a sustainable competitive advantage," Altman said, expressing hope for deeper cooperation with Samsung, according to the report.

Samsung said last week that its HBM supply for 2027 was sold out, while SK hynix said its production through 2029 was effectively accounted for through firm contracts and volumes under customer negotiations, according to the report.

"Customers are requesting more than twice the volume we can supply," SK hynix's head of HBM sales and marketing Kim Ki-tae said during an earnings call, as quoted by The Korea Herald.

The financing uncertainty could affect the company's planned AI data centre projects in South Korea. Samsung affiliates and SK Telecom had agreed last year to explore joint developments, but investment budgets and construction schedules remain unsettled.

No new agreements were announced following Altman's visit, and neither side confirmed discussions on chip pricing or investment commitments, the report said. The key challenge will be turning the partnerships into firm supply contracts and funded projects. - ANI