S. Korea says Nvidia issues won’t affect contracted GPU supplies

SEOUL: South Korea remains confident that Nvidia's contracted deliveries of graphics processing units (GPUs) will continue without disruption, despite a controversy surrounding the company's CEO, Jensen Huang. According to the deputy science minister, Ryu Jemyung, 10,000 GPUs funded under a 2025 supplementary budget had already arrived and were already in use.

Additionally, GPUs scheduled for 2026 are under contract and expected to enter service this year. Ryu emphasized that the ministry is closely monitoring the situation and discussing pricing and schedules with Nvidia Korea. The controversy came to light after Nvidia's board initiated an independent investigation into allegations that Huang had been targeted by a Chinese intelligence operation through his relationship with businesswoman Alice Huang.

While the board stated that there is no reason to believe US national security or Nvidia secrets were compromised, Huang expressed his willingness to cooperate fully. News of the controversy coincided with the cancellation of a visit by Huang's daughter, Madison Huang, an Nvidia senior director, to South Korea due to internal circumstances at Nvidia.

Some of her planned activities, such as meetings at Nvidia's headquarters and a partner dinner, were also canceled. Kakao Mobility, a company that had scheduled a photo session and Q&A event with Madison, decided to proceed with the business agreement, with senior director Gaurav Agarwal attending instead. Despite the controversy, Nvidia's AI Day Seoul event proceeded as planned, with an expected attendance of about 2,000 participants to discuss various aspects of artificial intelligence. Nvidia did not immediately provide a response to a Reuters request for comment.