Korea’s ambitions in artificial intelligence now have tangible infrastructure behind them. The newly signed MOU between DigitalBridge and KT marks a pivotal shift toward building the kind of large-scale, purpose-built data center capacity that competitive AI ecosystems require. This partnership matters because it moves Korea from strong AI rhetoric into concrete industrial execution.
Under the agreement, DigitalBridge and KT will explore developing next-generation AI and cloud campuses across Korea, including AI-factory-style facilities capable of scaling to gigawatt capacity, projects that imply multi-billion-dollar investment commitments. It is DigitalBridge’s first collaboration with a major Korean telco and directly reflects growing demand for hyperscale AI infrastructure driven by generative AI workloads and expanding cloud adoption.
The timing is not incidental. DigitalBridge, which manages roughly $108 billion in digital infrastructure assets globally, recently closed its $11.7 billion Partners III fund, with Asia, particularly developed markets such as South Korea, designated as a core growth region. Across its platform, the firm is already deploying tens of billions into hyperscale campuses in North America and expanding its Asia-Pacific footprint to more than 1 GW of capacity across Malaysia, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Korea has been the missing piece in this regional buildout, until now.
KT’s role gives the partnership practical grounding. The telecom operator brings nationwide network reach, operating experience in data centers, and a growing focus on GPU clusters and energy-efficient facilities built specifically for AI workloads. With options now under review to secure resilient AI capacity both domestically and internationally, KT is positioning itself not merely as a connectivity provider, but as an infrastructure platform for Korea’s AI ambitions.
This collaboration also reflects the broader regional push outlined at the APEC 2025 Summit for cross-border partnership on resilient, sustainable digital infrastructure. The AI race has entered an era where scale, energy efficiency, and integrated ecosystems matter more than pilot projects or isolated compute clusters. Korea’s competitiveness will depend on how quickly it can industrialize AI infrastructure at this next level.
The DigitalBridge-KT MOU suggests that step is finally underway. If executed at scale, it could place Korea squarely among Asia’s primary AI data center hubs.
