Reports indicate AMD CEO Lisa Su will visit South Korea in the coming days to discuss cooperation with Samsung Electronics and Naver. Some observers view the trip as an effort to challenge Nvidia's dominance in the AI market by strengthening AMD's partnerships with South Korean companies.
Industry sources cited by the Maeil Business Newspaper and ETNews said Su is scheduled to arrive in South Korea on March 18, 2026. The trip would mark her first visit to the country since becoming AMD CEO in 2014.
Su is expected to meet Samsung chairman Lee Jae-yong and Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon, among other South Korean partners, to discuss cooperation in memory and data center technologies.
Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon. Credit: Nate
Industry sources believe discussions with Samsung will focus on securing cooperation on high-bandwidth memory (HBM), a key AI infrastructure component, along with potential foundry collaboration.
Samsung is seeking to strengthen its position as an HBM supplier in the AI era while reviving its foundry business. AMD, meanwhile, needs a stable HBM supply chain and diversified foundry capacity as it competes with Nvidia.
Reports earlier indicated that Lee Jae-yong met Lisa Su in the US in December 2025 during a business trip, where the two discussed potential cooperation on AI chips.
Samsung currently supplies HBM3E to AMD for accelerators, including the MI350 series. Industry observers, therefore, expect both sides to discuss HBM4 supply plans during Su's visit.
Su's meeting with Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon is expected to cover expanding data center semiconductor supply, building sovereign AI infrastructure, and cooperation on next-generation computing technologies.
Naver Cloud, Naver's AI and cloud subsidiary, confirmed that a meeting between Choi and Su has been arranged but declined to disclose further details.
South Korean media also noted that Su's visit will take place in the same week as Nvidia's GTC 2026 conference. Industry observers interpret the timing as a signal that AMD aims to highlight partnerships with major South Korean companies while market attention remains focused on Nvidia.
Article translated by Levi Li and edited by Jack Wu
