SK Telecom Expands AI Alliances
Following its pivot to an 'AI Native' strategy, SK Telecom is expanding its global AI partnerships. At MWC, CEO Jung Jaihun outlined a 'Sovereign AI Package' strategy combining infrastructure and proprietary models, reinforcing the company's vision for telcos as key players in the AI ecosystem.
The "Sovereign AI" strategy is a direct response to the need for telcos to control their data and AI development, ensuring models are fine-tuned for local languages and cultural contexts. This approach is underpinned by massive infrastructure investments, including plans for 1GW-class AI data centers across Korea, aiming to create Asia's largest AI data hub. SKT's proprietary foundation model, A.X K1, is central to this, designed for both enterprise and industrial applications. The push for telco-specific Large Language Models (LLMs) is a key industry trend, as general-purpose models often fail to grasp the dense, protocol-heavy terminology of telecommunications standards from bodies like 3GPP and IETF. To address this, SK Telecom co-founded the Global Telco AI Alliance with partners like Deutsche Telekom, e&, and Singtel, which has since expanded to include SoftBank. The alliance is now forming a joint venture to co-develop multilingual LLMs tailored for telco needs, such as improving customer interactions through digital assistants. This collaborative approach extends to standardization bodies. SK Telecom is an active contributor to the ITU, 3GPP, and the O-RAN Alliance to shape future networks. The company was also elected to the board of the AI-RAN Alliance, signaling its intent to lead in the integration of AI into 6G network standards and architecture. Underpinning its AI ambitions, SKT has launched a sovereign GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) platform built on over 1,000 NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs. This cluster, named "Haein," is part of a national project to develop competitive domestic AI models and reduce reliance on foreign hyperscalers. The company is also developing specialized solutions, including a manufacturing AI package with SK hynix and collaborating with AI search firm Perplexity. To ensure responsible development, SK Telecom has established a formal AI governance framework branded "T.H.E. AI" (by Telco, for Humanity, with Ethics). This framework led to the company obtaining the ISO/IEC 42001 certification, the international standard for AI Management Systems, recognizing its processes for managing AI risks and ensuring ethical deployment. The governance structure involves oversight from the Board of Directors and a dedicated ESG Committee.
