Samsung SDS Breaks Ground on AI Data Center in Gumi as First Step of $44.6 Billion Yeongnam Investment

Samsung SDS has begun construction of an artificial intelligence data center in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, launching the first project under Samsung Group's 60 trillion won ($44.6 billion) investment plan aimed at transforming the Yeongnam region into a global hub for physical AI innovation. The groundbreaking marks a significant step in South Korea's push to build domestic AI computing infrastructure capable of supporting advanced manufacturing and robotics automation.

The facility will be built on a 46,000-square-meter site in Gongdan-dong with an initial power capacity of 60 megawatts, expandable to 120 MW to accommodate growing demand for AI computing infrastructure. Construction began after Gumi City approved the project in late August, with completion targeted for the end of 2028. Samsung SDS announced a 427.3 billion won investment in the project in January and signed a memorandum of understanding with North Gyeongsang Province and the city of Gumi.

Designed as a hyperscale facility, the data center will draw on Samsung SDS' 30 years of experience in data center construction and operations. It will feature high-capacity power infrastructure, redundant critical systems and emergency power supplies to ensure reliable operations of power-intensive AI servers. The facility will adopt a hybrid cooling system combining air and liquid cooling to manage heat generated by high-performance graphics processing units, with air cooling serving conventional servers handling networking and storage while liquid cooling supports high-density GPU server areas. The design will also accommodate racks with varying power demands, including ultra-high-power configurations.

Samsung SDS plans to operate its own GPU infrastructure while offering colocation services that allow customers to install and operate their own GPU equipment at the facility. The data center will serve both external customers and Samsung affiliates, particularly supporting the group's manufacturing robotics transformation initiatives by providing computing resources for training AI systems used in precision industrial robots. The project forms part of Samsung's broader investment roadmap announced in July, which covers humanoid robots and AI data centers in Gumi, all-solid-state batteries in Ulsan, advanced packaging substrates and multilayer ceramic capacitors for AI servers in Busan, and high-value-added vessels in Geoje.

"AI is transforming how companies operate and reshaping industrial competitiveness," Samsung SDS CEO Lee June-hee said at the ceremony. "Turning these changes into tangible results requires a solid foundation capable of processing vast amounts of data and ensuring the stable operation of AI systems." Lee said the company would leverage its expertise in data centers, cloud computing and AI to build reliable infrastructure, provide comprehensive AI services and contribute to the development of the regional economy. The project is expected to strengthen Korea's national AI development initiatives while fostering the regional industrial ecosystem.