AI NewsWaveNaver Signs $9 Billion AI Infrastructure Deal With Brookfield
Key points
- Naver signs AI infrastructure deal with Brookfield
- Precondition for Nvidia investment met
- 1GW global AI factory project gets under way
Naver signed a $9 billion deal with global asset manager Brookfield to secure AI computing infrastructure. AI Times and iNews24 reported that Naver announced this on the 27th. Bloter, The Elec, Digital Daily and IT Chosun jointly reported that the deal satisfies the precondition for Nvidia's strategic equity investment.
The project the deal will support is a 1-gigawatt (GW) global AI factory pursued jointly by the three companies. Bloter wrote that the project is expected to get on track, and Tech M reported that the three-way alliance with Nvidia has taken shape. Outlets also described Brookfield differently: The Elec and IT Chosun called it a global asset manager, iNews24 an alternative investment firm, and Digital Daily a global investment firm. Bloter described the project stage as getting on track, and Tech M as a full-scale start. Digital Daily reported that Naver disclosed the contract and revealed the detailed operating structure. According to that article, the structure involves establishing a separate entity fully funded by Brookfield.
The numbers differed by outlet. Converted into won, the $9 billion contract was about 11.9259 trillion won in Bloter, about 11.9 trillion won in The Elec, about 12 trillion won in AI Times and iNews24, and up to 12 trillion won in IT Chosun. Digital Daily put it at 18.74 trillion won, a large gap in the converted amount. The Elec and IT Chosun wrote that Nvidia's equity investment is $1 billion (about 1.3 trillion won), while Digital Today reported about 1.5 trillion won.
Expressions about Nvidia's standing also varied. AI Times said in its headline that Nvidia becomes the third-largest shareholder, and iNews24 wrote that Nvidia will soon become the third-largest shareholder. Digital Today pointed out on the 27th that, ahead of Nvidia's payment of its investment, Naver's AI factory project is being put to the test. The article explained that, for the payment, the precondition of securing computing infrastructure worth at least $9 billion must be met.
Glossary A gigawatt (GW) is a unit of power equal to one billion watts and is sometimes used to express the size of a data center in terms of power capacity.