SK Telecom (NYSE: SKM) announced the launch of its new sovereign AI Infrastructure, providing GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) based on the latest NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs.

The newly launched platform features one of Korea’s largest GPU clusters, consisting of over 1,000 NVIDIA BlackwellGPUs integrated into a single cluster. It delivers state-of-the-art performance in Korea and represents an advancement over the NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPU-based GPUaaS released in December 2024. It is expected to contribute significantly to nationwide AI infrastructure expansion and the growth of the Korean AI industry.

The cluster is named "Haein" (해인, 海印), inspired by Haeinsa Temple, where the Tripitaka Koreana (a UNESCO World Heritage collection of over 80,000 Buddhist scriptures) is stored. The name reflects the intention to establish this cluster as a key part of Korea’s sovereign AI infrastructure.

In particular, this Haein Cluster has secured a role in the Ministry of Science and ICT’s program for enhancing the foundation of AI computing resource utilization as part of “Proprietary AI Foundation Model” Project. It will actively contribute to the development of national AI foundation models with global competitiveness.

The AI Foundation Model program aims to strengthen Korea’s AI competitiveness on the global stage and advance the national AI ecosystem. Through this program, SK Telecom plans to develop its Gasan AI data center (AIDC) into a core infrastructure hub for the growth of Korea’s AI industry.

SK Telecom has prepared for this sovereign AI infrastructure launch with strategic global partnerships, which include Penguin Solutions for integrated AIDC solutions and Supermicro for globally sourced AI server procurement.

Also, SK Telecom’s proprietary technologies are being leveraged in various ways. By utilizing its in-house virtualization solution, “Petasus AI Cloud,” SK Telecom can instantly partition and reconfigure the GPU cluster according to customer needs, maximizing its utilization. In addition, the company provides “AI Cloud Manager,” an AIOps (AI for IT Operations) platform that efficiently manages the entire AI service lifecycle—from development and training to deployment. This platform, backed by extensive expertise in large-scale model development, enhances user work efficiency and development convenience.

This launch of Blackwell-based GPUaaS marks another tangible milestone following the opening of Lambda’s Korea region in December 2024. SK Telecom will continue to expand its GPUaaS business to provide strong infrastructure support that enables Korea’s AI industry to compete on the global stage.

“Haein Cluster’s GPUaaS will serve as a catalyst for enhancing both customer and national AI competitiveness,” said Kim Myoung Gook, head of GPUaaS Business Office at SK Telecom. “As an AI infrastructure provider, we are committed to building the nation’s AI superhighway.”