AWS plans $5B AI data center investments in South Korea's Incheon and Gyeonggi Province

Amazon Web Services (AWS) will invest more than $5 billion to build AI data centers in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province by 2031, the South Korean government said in a statement following President Lee Jae Myung’s meeting with CEO Matt Garman at the APEC CEO Summit held in Gyeongju. AWS AWS

The investment would be Amazon’s largest greenfield project in South Korea to date, and comes after it teamed up with SK Group last month to launch an AI data hub in Ulsan worth $4 billion.

Industry analysts anticipate that the investment will create thousands of jobs and stimulate growth in complementary sectors, including semiconductors, memory chips, and high-performance computing. This further bolsters South Korea’s efforts to develop its own data processing capabilities as demand for AI and other cloud services continues to surge.

The move by AWS in Asia is widely regarded as part of its overall strategy to increase its AI and cloud infrastructure presence in the region, enabling it to address global demand for generative AI model training, large-scale models, and high-density data center services.

Lee encouraged AWS to bolster its partnerships with Korean firms

According to Lee, the new AWS investment will support South Korea’s efforts toward economic rebound and long-term sustainability. He announced, “The key to that growth lies in advanced science and technology, and at the center of that is AI data. We are very pleased that Amazon Web Services has chosen to build Korea’s future together with us.”

Lee noted that Amazon’s investment demonstrated the firm’s faith in Korea’s AI and IT strength and supports the government’s push for AI implementation. He’s urged the enterprise to establish ties with domestic businesses.

Meanwhile, during the morning session of the APEC CEO Summit, Matt Garman, the CEO of Amazon, reaffirmed AWS’s dedication to the Asia-Pacific region, stating that its AI and cloud investments across 14 APEC countries will exceed $40 billion from 2025 to 2028.

He remarked, “These investments will contribute an additional $45 billion to the US (gross domestic product) while benefiting all APEC economies.”  He also told the audience that AI agents represent the real breakthrough everyone has been anticipating, as they’re capable of decision-making, taking action, and adapting to business needs over time.

Lee recently met with executives from seven international companies, whose total investment in South Korea over the next five years is expected to be approximately $9 billion, including AWS. Multiple companies are expanding their tech and AI operations in the country. 

For instance, the Busan plant of Renault Korea will be converted to produce electric vehicles, while Siemens Healthineers expands its Pohang ultrasound component line, making Korea a regional center. Amkor, Corning, Umicore, and Air Liquide also pursue their advanced development projects in Korea to deepen their worldwide intellectual property protection networks based on chip manufacturing materials & drive the production technologies space.

Meta previously revealed that it will invest $14 billion

Meta has stated that it will invest $14 billion in AI native ecosystems, funding startups, regional data centers, and cloud provider cooperation by 2027. Over the last year, Meta has reoriented its strategy around generative AI, proprietary chips, and data expansion, as exemplified by the launch of its Llama language models and increased U.S. AI infrastructure spending.

The company’s executives have stated at multiple Asian tech events that the company will invest more than $14 billion in AI-native ecosystems, including funding startups, developing regional data centers, and collaborating with cloud providers.

A specific allocation of $3 billion has been set aside for startups across India, Singapore, South Korea, and Vietnam. They also claimed that sizable computing centers for AI will be established or co-invested in at least three APAC countries. With an open-source model of training and deployment, a scalable site is currently under construction in Hyderabad to serve as the company’s lab and production facility.

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