SKT, NTT, Chunghwa Telecom to jointly launch $500 mil. AI fund

A renovated SK Telecom T Factory AI data center in Seoul / Courtesy of SK Telecom

SK Telecom said Wednesday it will establish a $500 million artificial intelligence (AI) investment fund with Japan's NTT and Taiwan's Chunghwa Telecom, marking a cross-border push by three of East Asia's largest telecommunications companies to jointly develop the global AI ecosystem.

The three companies announced the plan at a joint press conference at NTT's headquarters in the Otemachi business district of Tokyo.

The fund, called the IOWN AI Fund — named after NTT's Innovative Optical and Wireless Network initiative — will be managed through a newly incorporated fund management company called Catalight Capital, jointly established by the three telecom companies and based across Silicon Valley and East Asia.

The fund is expected to reach $500 million in total commitments and will target startups and technology companies in North America, Asia and Europe across five areas: AI data center infrastructure, such as power efficiency optimization and liquid cooling; AI semiconductors, including accelerators, graphics processing units and neural processing units; AI service applications in sectors such as health care, manufacturing and finance; AI software for cloud distributed systems and inference optimization; and optical communications technologies that improve data transmission performance and energy efficiency.

The three companies said they plan to go beyond purely financial investment, offering portfolio companies support in technology validation, service development and customer acquisition.

NTT said roughly 20 major global corporations, including Sony and Toshiba, have expressed interest in joining the fund as limited partners.

SK hynix is also reportedly preparing to participate. A first close is expected soon, with the fund set to formally launch thereafter.

The announcement comes as global competition over AI infrastructure accelerates, with companies and governments racing to secure capabilities across data centers, semiconductors and high-speed networks.

SK Telecom CEO Jeong Jae-heon said the company built its AI ecosystem through early-stage investments in global AI companies and the discovery and cultivation of domestic and international startups.

"Based on this track record and the competitiveness of the SK Group, we will expand opportunities to collaborate with AI innovators," he said.

Akira Shimada, president and CEO of NTT, said combining global cutting-edge technologies and partnerships is essential to realizing AI-native infrastructure.

"We will pursue business partnerships with promising startups and create new industrial foundations," he said.

Rong-Shy Lin, president of Chunghwa Telecom, said the company would leverage its telecommunications expertise to support global startups through cross-border business development.

"We will accelerate the commercialization of advanced technologies with the best partners and build the next-generation AI ecosystem," he said.

SK Telecom said it plans to expand Korea-Japan economic and technology cooperation in areas including AI data centers and both business-to-business and consumer AI services, building on the fund as a foundation.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.