Business is booming. Korea is doing very well; my partners are very important to me.
In the neon-lit streets of Seoul's Hongdae district, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang sat down over pork belly and soju with the chairmen of SK Group, LG Group, and Naver — a meal that was as much ceremony as strategy. The gathering on June 5 marked a deliberate act of cultural diplomacy, as Huang announced four new AI products and a Korean research center while celebrating the partnerships that underpin his company's ambitions. At a moment when the global race for artificial intelligence dominance turns on who controls the most advanced memory chips, South Korea has become not a supplier but a cornerstone — and Huang came to Seoul to say so in person, with a raised glass and a borrowed word for boom.
- Nvidia's next generation of AI hardware — including the Vera Rubin and Jetson Thor product lines — depends critically on high-bandwidth memory chips that only Samsung and SK hynix can produce at scale, making South Korea a strategic pressure point Huang cannot afford to neglect.
- The dinner at a Hongdae pork belly restaurant drew hundreds of onlookers into the street, transforming a business meeting into a public spectacle that both sides understood would be photographed, shared, and read as a signal of deepening alliance.
- Huang's decision to shout 'Go Korea!' over somaek, praise K-dramas, and visit e-sports legend Faker before meeting any executive was a calculated act of cultural fluency — the kind that distinguishes a partner from a client.
- Four product announcements, a new research center, and robotics collaboration with Hyundai collectively mapped out an Nvidia future that is architecturally South Korean, signaling that the relationship is expanding rather than merely continuing.
- Even the snacks told the story: SK hynix honey-banana chips bearing the initials HBM — the same acronym as high-bandwidth memory — were handed to the crowd outside, a playful gesture that made the supply chain legible to anyone paying attention.
Jensen Huang arrived in Seoul on June 5 not as a distant executive dispatching memos but as someone who wanted to sit at a table, share food, and raise a glass with the men who run South Korea's largest companies. He spent his evening at a pork belly restaurant in the Hongdae neighbourhood alongside SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, and Naver founder Lee Hae-jin — a gathering that signaled something larger than routine business.
The evening moved with theatrical intention. After dinner, the group walked Hongdae's streets through gathering crowds before settling at a fried chicken chain, where Huang joined in somaek — the Korean ritual of blending soju and beer. He stirred the glass, raised it, and called out to the crowd: 'Go Korea! SK, LG, Naver, cheers!' The moment was captured and shared exactly as intended.
Speaking to reporters outside, Huang announced four new Nvidia products — Vera Rubin, Vera, RTX Spark, and Jetson Thor — each dependent on memory chips manufactured by Samsung and SK hynix. He also confirmed a research center under construction in South Korea and described Hyundai, LG, SK, Samsung, and Naver as 'booming' partners. These were not casual mentions but anchors, tying Nvidia's next wave of AI infrastructure directly to Korean manufacturing capacity.
Earlier that day, Huang had visited T1 Base Camp to meet League of Legends legend Lee 'Faker' Sang-hyeok, using the moment to acknowledge that Nvidia and Korea had been partners for 25 years through gaming graphics cards — a reminder that the relationship had depth long before AI became the defining industry of the decade.
Among the evening's subtler details: SK hynix honey-banana chips, bearing the initials HBM, were distributed to the crowd outside — a playful gesture that made visible the high-bandwidth memory supply chain at the heart of everything Huang had come to celebrate. Hundreds had gathered near the restaurant before the meal even began, and Huang's presence in Seoul — eating, drinking, and toasting with the country's industrial elite — sent an unmistakable message: South Korea is not peripheral to Nvidia's expansion. It is the foundation.
Jensen Huang arrived in Seoul on June 5 not as a distant executive but as someone eager to sit at a table, share a meal, and raise a glass with the men who run South Korea's largest companies. The Nvidia CEO spent his evening at Hyeongnim Jeoyo, a pork belly restaurant tucked into the Hongdae neighbourhood, where he dined with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, and Naver founder and Chairman Lee Hae-jin. It was the kind of dinner that signals something larger than business as usual—a deliberate courtship of the partners Huang needs most.
The evening unfolded with theatrical precision. After the initial meal, the group walked through Hongdae's streets, drawing crowds of onlookers who had gathered hoping for exactly this: a glimpse of the man whose company has become central to the global race for artificial intelligence dominance. They moved to a nearby outlet of BBQ, a popular fried chicken chain, where Huang joined in somaek, the Korean ritual of mixing soju and beer. He stirred the drink with a spoon, raised his glass, and shouted: "Go Korea! SK, LG, Naver, cheers!" The moment was captured, shared, and amplified—exactly as intended.
When Huang stepped outside to address reporters, his message was direct. He had come to thank his Korean partners for what he called an "incredible year," and to celebrate their mutual success. "Business is booming! Bbang!" he said, deploying the Korean word for boom with deliberate charm. But beneath the warmth lay strategy. Huang announced four new Nvidia products—Vera Rubin, Vera, RTX Spark, and Jetson Thor—all of which depend on memory chips manufactured by Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. He also mentioned a prominent research centre under construction in South Korea. These were not casual mentions. They were anchors, tying Nvidia's future directly to Korean manufacturing capacity.
The partnerships Huang highlighted extended across the country's industrial landscape. Hyundai Motor Group would collaborate with Nvidia on robotics. LG, SK, Samsung, and Naver were all described as "booming" partners. The message was clear: Nvidia's next wave of AI infrastructure would be built, in significant part, on South Korean foundations. Huang leaned into the cultural dimension as well, praising Korean barbecue, fried chicken, and even K-dramas—the kind of cultural fluency that signals respect and genuine interest rather than transactional engagement.
Earlier that day, Huang had made his first stop at T1 Base Camp, an internet cafe operated by the e-sports organization T1 in Hongdae. There he met Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok, the League of Legends player widely regarded as the greatest of all time. Huang used the moment to anchor Nvidia's history in gaming, noting that his company and Korea had been partners for 25 years through graphics cards. "That was my first stop to recognise that GeForce and Korea have been friends for 25 years," he said. It was a reminder that this relationship had depth, not just present-day convenience.
The evening's details revealed careful attention to symbolism. During dinner, the business leaders distributed boxes of doughnuts and Korean snacks to the crowd gathered outside. Among them were honey-banana-flavored chips made by SK hynix—notable because the initials HBM matched the acronym for high-bandwidth memory, the chips that Nvidia desperately needs and that SK hynix and Samsung produce. The playfulness of the gesture masked its seriousness: Huang was making visible the supply chain that matters most to his company's future.
Hundreds of people had gathered near the restaurant hours before the meal began around 7 p.m., hoping to catch a glimpse of Huang and the Korean business leaders. His daughter Madison attended as well, though she sat at a separate table. The trip itself was part of a larger strategic push. As Nvidia works to align its supply chain with key South Korean partners for its next generation of AI infrastructure, Huang's presence in Seoul—eating, drinking, and celebrating with the country's industrial elite—sent a message that South Korea's role in Nvidia's expansion is not peripheral but central. The company's strength in advanced manufacturing, memory chips, robotics, and AI infrastructure made it indispensable to what comes next.
Citas Notables
Korea is doing very well; my partners in Korea are very important to me. So I came to Korea to thank them, celebrate and congratulate them for such an incredible year.— Jensen Huang, Nvidia CEO
That was my first stop to recognise that GeForce and Korea have been friends for 25 years.— Jensen Huang, on visiting T1 Base Camp
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did Huang choose to do this in person, in a restaurant, rather than through a video call or a formal press conference?
Because supply chains are built on trust, and trust requires presence. He needed these men to feel valued, to know that Nvidia sees them as partners, not vendors. A video call doesn't accomplish that.
The details about the snacks—the HBM chips, the somaek ritual—these feel staged. Were they?
Almost certainly. But that doesn't make them less meaningful. Huang was speaking in the language his partners understand: respect for their culture, attention to their products, willingness to participate in their rituals. It's diplomacy, and diplomacy requires choreography.
What's actually at stake here? Why does South Korea matter so much to Nvidia right now?
Memory chips. SK hynix and Samsung make the high-bandwidth memory that Nvidia's AI chips need to function at scale. Without them, Nvidia can't deliver the infrastructure the world is demanding. South Korea isn't just a market—it's a critical node in the supply chain.
But couldn't Huang have secured those partnerships without the barbecue and the soju?
Technically, yes. But the meal does something a contract can't. It says: we're in this together, we celebrate together, we're not just extracting value from you. In a world where every major tech company is competing for the same Korean manufacturing capacity, that matters.
What does this trip signal about the broader competition for AI dominance?
That it's not just about innovation anymore—it's about securing the physical infrastructure to scale. Huang is essentially saying: we've won the software race, now we need to lock down the hardware supply chain. And South Korea is where that lock happens.
Is there any risk in being this visible, this dependent on Korean partners?
Yes. It makes clear that Nvidia's future is tied to geopolitical stability in East Asia. If anything disrupts the relationship between the U.S. and South Korea, or between South Korea and China, Nvidia's supply chain becomes vulnerable. Huang's presence acknowledges that risk and tries to mitigate it through relationship-building.