AMD and South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT signed a memorandum of understanding for AI semiconductor ecosystem cooperation on July 23 (local time) in San Francisco. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon met with AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su at the 'AMD Advancing AI 2026' event to formalize collaboration in AI semiconductor and computing fields. The partnership aims to strengthen South Korea's AI semiconductor ecosystem as the global AI semiconductor market shifts from single GPU-centric computing to heterogeneous computing architectures that combine CPUs, GPUs, and neural processing units (NPUs) to meet growing inference demands from generative AI and agentic AI.
Ministry of Science and ICT and AMD Sign MOU for AI Semiconductor Cooperation
The Ministry of Science and ICT and AMD signed the MOU at the 'AMD Advancing AI 2026' event held in San Francisco on July 23 (local time). Deputy Prime Minister Bae Kyung-hoon and AMD Chair and CEO Lisa Su formalized the agreement to advance cooperation in AI semiconductor and computing technologies. The MOU establishes a framework for joint initiatives in heterogeneous computing infrastructure and AI research development.
Heterogeneous AI Computing Infrastructure Initiative Announced
The Ministry of Science and ICT and AMD will pursue the construction and demonstration of heterogeneous AI computing infrastructure that integrates AMD's CPUs and GPUs with domestically produced NPUs. The initiative aims to implement an integrated computing environment that efficiently combines and utilizes various computing resources according to the characteristics of different AI services. The partnership plans to create an open AI computing ecosystem involving not only AI semiconductor companies but also domestic firms in memory, data processing units (DPUs), Compute Express Link (CXL), networks, servers, and orchestration software.
AMD to Establish AI Research Center in South Korea
AMD will pursue the establishment of an AI research center in South Korea. The AI research center will serve as a collaboration hub supporting technical cooperation among domestic companies, universities, and research institutions, AI semiconductor software development, computing technology verification, and joint research based on AMD's AI computing resources and software capabilities.
Officials Outline Strategic Priorities for AI Ecosystem
Deputy Prime Minister Bae Kyung-hoon stated that global AI competition is shifting toward heterogeneous computing that combines various computing resources such as CPUs, GPUs, and NPUs, and toward open ecosystems. He said the cooperation with AMD will enhance the competitiveness of South Korea's AI semiconductor ecosystem and create a new cooperation model to respond to changes in global AI computing infrastructure.
AMD CEO Lisa Su stated that South Korea is AMD's core strategic market with world-class competitiveness in semiconductors, AI, advanced research, and physical AI. She said AMD will actively support South Korea in building open and heterogeneous AI infrastructure by combining high-performance computing technology, open software capabilities, and global ecosystem partnerships through cooperation with the Ministry of Science and ICT.
FAQ
What did AMD and South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT sign on July 23?
AMD and South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT signed a memorandum of understanding for AI semiconductor ecosystem cooperation on July 23 (local time) in San Francisco at the 'AMD Advancing AI 2026' event.
What will AMD establish in South Korea under the MOU?
AMD will pursue the establishment of an AI research center in South Korea that will serve as a collaboration hub supporting technical cooperation, AI semiconductor software development, computing technology verification, and joint research based on AMD's AI computing resources and software capabilities.
What type of computing infrastructure will the partnership develop?
The Ministry of Science and ICT and AMD will pursue the construction and demonstration of heterogeneous AI computing infrastructure that integrates AMD's CPUs and GPUs with domestically produced NPUs to efficiently combine various computing resources according to AI service characteristics.
