SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won (far right) is listening to an explanation of ‘AI Fortune Teller’ at the SK exhibition hall on the 9th (local time), the opening day of ‘CES 2024’. [사진 SK그룹]
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, who made a major change in management late last year, citing ‘sudden death’, set out to find a solution by looking at cases of artificial intelligence (AI) conversion and convergence among global companies at CES 2024, the world’s largest IT and home appliance show.
He met with reporters at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) on the 9th (local time), the first day of the opening of CES, and said, “In some ways, we are facing a problem where we have to abandon the (business) model that has been in place for decades.” “Rather than just doing what you’re good at, you should be able to do what the market wants,” he said. Chairman Choi’s ‘SK Sudden Death Prevention Act’, which was revealed in CES activities and interviews, can be summarized in three keywords.
① Transition: AI+Alpha=Chairman Choi said to reporters who asked for his opinion on the CES, “Products with AI in all areas are creating a market, and whether we like it or not, I think we have begun to live in the AI era.” He mentioned the group’s efforts to ride the AI wave, such as discovering new use cases for semiconductors and SK Telecom, and said, “There will be a lot of investment in AI, but the most important thing is whether the AI market will actually open up to that extent.”
At this CES, Chairman Choi showed great interest in the convergence of AI and existing industries, or cases of heterogeneous combination between industries. On this day, while looking around the LG Electronics exhibition hall, he stood in front of ‘Bon Voyage’, a customized living space in the form of a camping trailer, and seemed surprised, saying, “(LG) makes cars?” At the Samsung Electronics exhibition hall, we took a close look at AI smart home-related functions and transparent display TVs.
② Total: Energy + ICT = SK has traditionally emphasized autonomous management ‘separately and together’, but this year, Chairman Choi is emphasizing ‘together’. He told reporters that day, “Whether it is AI or energy, there is a need for SK to present a package or solution all at once rather than having affiliates meet customers separately.” He said, “If the convergence (of AI and existing industries) continues, there is a problem that infrastructure (such as power) must become increasingly larger,” and “This is another task that requires enormous amounts of chips and energy.” It contains a determination to solve the problem by combining SK’s semiconductor, energy, ICT, and AI businesses with the net zero (carbon reduction) that it has emphasized.
③ Tuning: Manager Hae-hyeon=Chairman Choi said about this year’s key businesses, “We cannot think that last year was a good year (for SK), and new tuning is needed for each business.” It is an extension of ‘Haehyeongyeongjang (解弦更張)’ (loosening and fixing the loose string of the harp) that Chairman Choi ordered in his New Year’s address. Chairman Choi said, “I need to go somewhere and give my head as well,” suggesting that he would take the lead in business transformation.
Las Vegas = Reporter Seohyun Shim shshim@joongang.co.kr
2024-01-10 15:02:01
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