Naver is moving fast on its goal to build a massive AI data center facility, securing $1 billion from Nvidia and another $9 billion from Brookfield Asset Management. This substantial funding targets the expansion of what Naver calls its "AI factory," centered on the GAK Sejong data center in South Korea.
Details on the AI Data Center Expansion
The project kicks off with 55 megawatts of initial capacity, aiming to scale up to a gigawatt by 2029. Nvidia’s investment mainly brings advanced GPUs and AI technologies to the table rather than just cash. The plan includes deploying over 60,000 GPUs across multiple sectors, with Naver Cloud playing a central role as a major tenant.
Brookfield's $9 billion commitment will cover both the physical buildout of the data center and the necessary upgrades to power infrastructure to support the huge energy demands. Earlier this year, Naver already secured a 400 billion won loan, about $270 million, specifically for expanding the Sejong facility. The company’s chair, Lee Hae-jin, traveled to Toronto in July to finalize Brookfield’s funding agreement.
Industry Reactions and Wider Implications
Building gigawatt-scale AI infrastructure in under four years is aggressive. Power logistics alone, including grid connections and substation construction, often require years of planning and execution. This push could intensify competition for electricity, especially in regions where AI centers and Bitcoin mining already strain grids, like parts of Texas and Scandinavia.
Smaller decentralized computing platforms such as Render, Akash, and io.net are vying for some of the same AI computing demand, but Naver’s scale dwarfs these efforts. The focus on high-capacity AI centers reflects a broader move to meet increasing demand for machine learning processing power.
