SK Telecom : SKT Invests USD 200 Million in SMART Global Holdings, an Integrated AI Data Center Solution Provider in the US

SK Telecom (NYSE: SKM) ("SKT") signed a definitive agreement to invest USD$200 million in SMART Global Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGH) ("SGH"), a leading designer and developer of high-performance, high-availability enterprise solutions.

Additionally, SKT and SGH intend to leverage their complementary capabilities to enhance customer offerings in the development of differentiated global end-to-end AI factory and data center solutions and services, advanced memory market products and services, and NPU-based AI edge servers.

Under the terms of the agreement, SKT will invest USD$200 million in SGH by acquiring 200,000 preferred shares. The 200,000 preferred shares are convertible into ordinary shares of SGH at a conversion price of $32.81 per preferred share, subject to adjustment upon the occurrence of certain events.

Headquartered in Milpitas, California (US), SGH offers specialized platforms and services for high-performance computing, AI, machine learning, fault-tolerant computing, and the Internet of Things that span the continuum of edge, core, and cloud. Through its Penguin Solutions business, SGH provides integrated AI data center solutions ranging from the design of AI clusters consisting of large-scale GPU servers to the expertise in data center deployment and operation.

SKT and SGH plan to enter into a collaboration this year with an emphasis on establishing a more concrete cooperation across the AI infrastructure business, including AI data center, edge AI, and future memory solutions.

SKT's current AI-related investments and partnerships include Anthropic, Lambda, and Perplexity. Along with these investments, the alliance with SGH is expected to solidify SKT's position in the AI value chain across the three pillars: AI semiconductor, AI infrastructure and AI services.

"Our investment in and cooperation with SGH will give us an opportunity to boost our position in the AI value chain," said Ryu Young-sang, CEO of SKT. "In the era of AI transformation, we plan to continue to collaborate and make proactive investments to achieve global leadership in AI."

"We are thrilled to have SKT as a strategic investor," said Mark Adams, CEO of SGH. "Today's announcement is a testament to Penguin Solutions' capabilities in the deployment of AI factories at scale through our systems, software, and managed services suite of solutions. We look forward to executing on these strategic collaboration opportunities with the SKT team and believe they will create value for our respective stakeholders."