OpenAI's Sam Altman makes a surprise trip to South Korea

Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, made an unannounced trip to South Korea over the weekend. He met with Samsung executives and, according to South Korean media, had lunch with the head of SK Group. Both companies make advanced memory chips, a key part of the hardware behind AI.

What happened

Samsung said Altman met about 50 executives from its affiliates on Saturday in Yongin, south of Seoul. They came from electronics, finance and biotechnology. Talks covered AI developments, possible business opportunities and how the technology affects corporate decision-making and operations.

Local media reported that Altman also had lunch with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, with senior executives from SK Hynix and SK Telecom present. SK Hynix told CNBC it could not confirm the meeting. Altman left South Korea on Saturday, according to local media.

This builds on an October 2025 visit. Then, OpenAI announced partnerships with Samsung and SK Group under Stargate, its effort to expand AI infrastructure around the world. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix outlined plans to ramp up production of advanced memory chips. OpenAI and its Korean partners also agreed to explore building AI data centers in the country.

What is not known

The people at the meetings did not share details. Local media said the talks may have touched on AI chips and data centers, but that is not confirmed. The reports describe no new agreement. For everyday users, the link is indirect: the supply of chips helps set how fast AI tools can grow.