Hyundai Motor Group Moves Ahead with Saemangeum AI Data Center Project; Two SPCs to Launch Next Month

[Financial News] Hyundai Motor Group has finalized the decision for Hyundai Motor Company, Kia Corporation, Hyundai Mobis, Hyundai Engineering and Construction, and Hyundai AutoEver to participate in the investment to build the Saemangeum AI data center. The AI data center is the first project set to begin construction among the projects making up the Saemangeum AI Valley, which is being developed at a scale of about 9 trillion won.
On the 30th, Hyundai Motor Group said it plans to launch two special purpose companies (SPCs) next month, one responsible for the data center and the other for GPU services. Construction is scheduled to begin in March 2027, with full services set to launch in early 2030.
In September, the establishment of a 200 MW solar power generation SPC and the architectural review process for the AI data center got underway as scheduled. The SPCs launching in November will be divided into a “data center SPC,” responsible for building the hyperscale data center and its infrastructure, and a “GPU services SPC,” which will secure high-performance GPUs and provide services. The plan is to separate infrastructure construction from the operation of computing resources and software to enhance expertise and speed of execution.
After establishing the SPCs, Hyundai Motor Group will proceed with detailed design work and obtain key permits and approvals. Hyundai AutoEver, the group’s IT and software affiliate, has confirmed its participation in the GPU services SPC following board approval. It will support the group-wide AI transformation (AX) by drawing on its accumulated technology and expertise in managing high-performance computing resources.
The group also plans to build up data and repeatedly train and validate systems using the Saemangeum AI data center as a foundation, in order to internalize core technologies in the fields of physical AI—including autonomous driving, robotics and manufacturing AI—and R&D, and strengthen its capabilities.
The data center will serve as a supercomputing hub for training and validating end-to-end (E2E) autonomous driving algorithms around the clock without interruption. The group says that achieving Level 4 or higher autonomous driving requires continuous training on vast amounts of driving data collected on real roads, as well as synthetic data generated virtually to simulate hazardous situations such as severe weather and unexpected obstacles.
Robot behavior models will be intensively trained in a data-center-based digital twin environment. This can improve the sophistication of technologies that allow robots to perceive visual and language inputs and make decisions and perform tasks autonomously; service and mobile robotics that can adapt flexibly to unstructured environments; and joint-control technologies for precise movements. In vehicle R&D, high-performance AI will also be used at every stage, from initial design concepts to virtual crash tests, aerodynamic analysis and battery thermal management, reducing researchers’ routine, repetitive tasks and improving development efficiency and quality.
The group is also discussing technological cooperation with global companies to build stable data center infrastructure and enable large-scale cloud integration. It is coordinating financial support plans based on memorandums of understanding (MOUs) signed with the Korea Development Bank and others.
Hyundai Motor Group held an opening ceremony for the HMG Saemangeum Office that morning at the Future Mobility Tech Center of the Institute of Automotive Technology in Gunsan, North Jeolla Province. The office is an on-site hub staffed by dedicated personnel that provides one-stop support for site permitting, construction, issue management and real-time communication with relevant government ministries. Its role is to ensure that the investment, worth about 9 trillion won, proceeds as planned.
Government and local government officials, including Moon Seong-yo, head of the Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency; Lee Won-taek, Governor of North Jeolla Province; and Kim Jae-jun, mayor of Gunsan City, attended the opening ceremony. Hyundai Motor Group was represented by, among others, Shin Seung-gyu, vice president in charge of RH PMO.
Shin Seung-gyu, the vice president, emphasized, “Hyundai Motor Group plans to prioritize construction in Saemangeum of an AI data center capable of accumulating and training on large volumes of data, to bring autonomous driving and physical AI technologies in-house and advance its capabilities.” He added, “The HMG Saemangeum Office is a symbol of our determination to move the project forward without faltering.”
The Saemangeum AI Valley is a large-scale project to build a self-sustaining, circular industrial ecosystem by combining an AI data center, a robot manufacturing cluster, solar power generation and an electrolysis plant that produces clean hydrogen, and an AI hydrogen city. Hyundai Motor Group plans to strengthen communication, centered on the office, with relevant organizations including North Jeolla Province and the Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency, so it can respond quickly to developments on the ground.
A Hyundai Motor Group representative said, “The establishment of the AI data center SPC is a signal that investment in the Saemangeum AI Valley has gained full momentum,” adding, “Centered on the HMG Saemangeum Office, we will ensure that related projects as well as the AI data center move forward without a hitch.”
[email protected] Kim Dong-chan Reporter