Nam Hyun-woo has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2013, mostly covering business and politics. He currently belongs to the Business Desk where he covers topics such as emerging tech, AI, ICT and Korea's chaebol community. Prior to joining the team, he was the paper's correspondent for the presidential office of Korea during the Yoon Suk Yeol and Moon Jae-in administrations.
SK chairman calls for sovereign AI to compete in global race
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won speaks to reporters during the opening ceremony of the 2025 Icheon Forum at the Grand Walkerhill Seoul hotel in Gwangjin District, Monday. Yonhap
By Nam Hyun-woo
‘AI competition is survival of fittest,’ says SK hynix CEO
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said Monday the group should nurture the capability to develop sovereign artificial intelligence (AI) that can compete in the quickly evolving global AI market.
“What we need to understand about sovereign AI is that it is not confined within our borders but is part of a global race,” Chey told reporters during SK Group’s annual Icheon Forum. “That is why we thought we must develop a sovereign AI that can win in the global market.”
Sovereign AI refers to an AI ecosystem that is developed and operated under a nation’s own control, using its own data, infrastructure, algorithms and regulations. The concept is gaining attention as countries are gaining awareness of the importance of protecting digital sovereignty amid the growing reliance on global AI platforms.
Sovereign AI was one of the key agendas of the Icheon Forum, which kicked off its three-day run at the Grand Walkerhill Seoul hotel Monday. The annual forum is a gathering of key executives of SK affiliates to review the group’s management strategies and explore new opportunities.
SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the 2025 Icheon Forum at the Grand Walkerhill Seoul hotel in Gwangjin District, Monday. Courtesy of SK Group
In the opening remarks for the forum, SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung said AI will usher in an era of “destructive innovation,” adding that SK Group’s venturing spirit is required for affiliates to stay afloat in the current condition of “survival of the AI fittest” competition.
Kwak noted that the innovation brought by AI is not a gradual improvement but a disruptive change that fundamentally overturns existing frameworks, saying “it will be far greater and more powerful than the innovation brought by Apple’s iPhone in 2007 or by the rise of cloud computing in 2016.”
“Companies that fall behind in this competition will find it difficult to survive in the future,” Kwak said. “For decades, our industry has been defined by standard products, but now it is shifting toward customization. And that’s not all. Whether it is accurately forecasting market trends or improving efficiency in manufacturing processes, competitiveness today is evaluated by AI capabilities.”
Kwak cited Chey’s 2016 remarks that “without fundamental change, we could face a sudden death,” saying, “the past nine years have proved just how important those words were.”
SK Group acquired SK hynix in 2012, when the chipmaker was mired in serious financial difficulties. Kwak recalled that period, saying, “We even had to cut down side dishes at the company cafeteria to save costs.”
After the acquisition, Chey made hefty investments in the chipmaker, securing large-scale equipment and facilities, which resulted in the company’s 2013 launch of the world’s first high-bandwidth memory (HBM), which is now essential for AI accelerators.
“Some may say SK hynix was simply lucky, but I don’t see it that way,” he said. “No matter how good an opportunity may be, without thorough preparation and something fundamental in place, we would never have been able to seize it.”
He said that fundamental element was SK Group’s “SUPEX” principle, which refers to the group’s venturing spirit for innovation and improvements toward “super excellence."
“Knowledge can become a path only when we accept it deeply and move forward with a mindset of endless improvement and perseverance," he added.
Citing Charles Darwin’s concept of “the survival of the fittest,” Kwak said today’s AI competition is “the survival of the AI fittest,” and SK affiliates should embody the SUPEX spirit.
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, left, attends the opening ceremony of the 2025 Icheon Forum at the Grand Walkerhill Seoul hotel in Gwangjin District, Monday. Courtesy of SK Group
During the forum, SK On CEO Lee Seok-hee told reporters that the battery maker will seek a turnaround in its faltering profitability by enhancing the fundamental competitiveness of its battery business.
“The (recovery) outlook will depend on how flexibly the company responds to market uncertainties in the second half of the year and how quickly its operation improvement efforts progress,” Lee said.
The three-day forum will focus on AI and digital transformation. On the second day, affiliates will hold workshops to explore ideas for management improvement, and the event will conclude on Wednesday with a keynote speech by Chey.