Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang arrived in South Korea on June 5 [1] to meet with e-sports players and business executives.

The visit signals a deepening strategic alliance between the world's leading AI chipmaker and South Korea's gaming and corporate sectors. By engaging with both cultural icons and industry leaders, Huang is positioning Nvidia to secure its influence within the East Asian tech ecosystem.

Huang landed at Gimpo International Airport around 1 p.m. KST [1]. This trip marks his first return to the country in seven months [1], following his appearance at the APEC CEO summit in November 2025 [1].

His first stop was the T1 Base Camp, a PC-bang located in the Hong-dae district of Seoul. There, Huang met with professional gamer Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok and other e-sports athletes. The meeting highlighted the intersection of high-performance hardware and the competitive gaming culture that defines much of the Korean digital landscape.

Following the visit to the gaming center, Huang attended a dinner featuring samgyeopsal, or grilled pork belly, with a group of Korean corporate executives in Hong-dae. These informal meetings are often used in Korean business culture to build trust, and rapport before finalizing major agreements.

During the visit, Nvidia announced a significant strategic gift for the country. The company said it will supply 260,000 units [1] of its latest artificial intelligence semiconductors to South Korea [2]. This massive delivery of hardware is intended to bolster the nation's AI infrastructure and computational capabilities.

"Nvidia is unpacking a gift bundle of 260,000 latest-generation AI semiconductors to be supplied to Korea," YTN said [2].

“Nvidia is unpacking a gift bundle of 260,000 latest-generation AI semiconductors to be supplied to Korea”

The delivery of 260,000 AI chips represents a massive injection of computing power into the South Korean market, likely aimed at cementing Nvidia's dominance against emerging competitors. By pairing this hardware gift with high-profile cultural engagements—such as meeting Faker—Nvidia is executing a 'soft power' strategy to ensure its technology remains the standard for both the consumer gaming market and the enterprise AI sector in Korea.