"The Only One in the World": Jensen Huang's $1.5 Billion Graphics Card Gift — Who Was the Lucky Recipient?

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\r[Financial News] Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, visited Korea for the first time in seven months and met with the T1 roster, a global esports team, as his first stop. Huang said Korea's PC bang and gaming culture played a key role in NVIDIA's early growth. He will then continue his business agenda by meeting with the heads of major Korean conglomerates to discuss cooperation in artificial intelligence (AI).
After arriving at Gimpo Airport on a private jet on the afternoon of the 5th, Huang headed first to T1 Base Camp in Mapo District, Seoul. The move is seen as symbolic recognition of the Korean market's contribution to NVIDIA's early growth as the company evolved from a graphics chip maker into a global AI infrastructure firm.
At the site, Huang met with the five starting members of T1, including Faker, Lee Sang-hyeok, and emphasized, "Korea is the birthplace of esports." He added, "Korean gamers chose the best Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) to win, and that became the driving force behind NVIDIA's growth."
The event also drew attention for a surprise giveaway: a next-generation flagship graphics card, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090, signed by both Huang and Faker, was awarded to one citizen through a raffle.
Huang said of the graphics card, "It's a special edition, the only one in the world, so it could be worth around $1 million, or about 1.537 billion won." The product's actual domestic market price is reported to be around 7 million won.
He also responded by giving two visitors at the venue vouchers for the RTX Spark, a new-generation gaming laptop that blurs the line between desktops and notebooks.
As NVIDIA is a core infrastructure company leading the AI era, Huang's visit to Korea is focused on strengthening business partnerships with major domestic companies.
After finishing his first-day schedule, Huang met that evening near Hongik University with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, and Naver Chairman Lee Hae-jin for a so-called "samgyeopsal and soju meeting."
Huang's packed schedule will continue. On the 7th, he will meet with executives from major Korean game companies, including NCSoft Chairman Kim Taek-jin and KRAFTON Chairman Chang Byung-gyu, to discuss industry issues. On the 8th, he will hold a meeting with more than 30 representatives from Korean AI startups in the Physical AI value chain. He also plans to visit Naver headquarters, the AI Institute of Seoul National University (AIIS), and the SNU Robotics Laboratory to see Korea's AI research sites firsthand.
It is also reported that a solo meeting with Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon is being coordinated during his visit.
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moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter