South Korean AI chip startups, including Rebellions, FuriosaAI, and Mobilint, have secured over $30 million in overseas contracts as of mid-2026. These firms argue that they lack the large-scale domestic commercial track records necessary to compete globally with Nvidia.
Companies are requesting that the government facilitate large-scale domestic deployments to serve as proof of concept. A notable example is SK Telecom's use of the Rebellions ATOM-Max NPU, which handles up to 50 million daily AI service requests within its data center infrastructure.
The Ministry of Science and ICT has established the K-AI Semiconductor Growth Forum to coordinate efforts between startups and large enterprises. Additionally, the K-NPU Project, launched in late 2025, focuses on developing and verifying domestic neural processing units.
National infrastructure plans aim for 8.4 GW of capacity for AI data centers, supported by hundreds of trillions of won in public and private investment. These projects are intended to provide the deployment runway required by local chipmakers.
As of September 1, 2026, high-performance AI chips were added to South Korea’s strategic goods list, requiring government approval for overseas shipments. Startups report that this regulatory compliance adds significant operational costs compared to larger competitors.
