Policy / Opening up
South Korea
South Korea is backing public AI compute and steering new AI data centres outside the Seoul region.
The AI Basic Act took effect in January 2026 and lets the government designate AI data centres and AI clusters. The science ministry has plans for a National AI Computing Center and a target of 18,000 advanced GPUs by mid-2026, with support for AI data centres outside the capital region. Several of the planning documents date from 2025, so progress against the targets has not been verified here.
Power and grid
The ministry plan offers preferential power supply assessment for AI data centres sited outside the Seoul metropolitan area.
The rules and programmes
| Instrument | Kind | Status | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Basic Act | Law | in force | Takes effect one year after promulgation, in January 2026; Article 25 allows designation of AI data centres and Article 23 of AI clusters. |
| AI computing infrastructure expansion plan | Policy | in force | Aims for 18,000 advanced GPUs by mid-2026 and preferential power-supply assessment and site flexibility for AI data centres outside the Seoul metropolitan area. |
| National AI Computing Center | Programme | in force | Announced 22 January 2025 as a public-private special purpose company offering advanced GPUs; the page describes a 2025 call for proposals. |
Checked against the primary sources linked above on 2 October 2026. Due for review by 1 January 2027. This is a summary, not legal advice. If something is out of date, tell us.