SEOUL, June 07 (AJP) - Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won (Tony Chey) held a highly public, casual dinner meeting over fried chicken and beer in Seoul on Sunday, a gathering that highlighted the close ties between the AI chip giant and the world's leading high-bandwidth memory (HBM) maker.
Arriving at a Kkanbu Chicken branch in southern Seoul's Gangnam district at 6:46 p.m., Huang wore a Doosan Bears baseball uniform—having just thrown the ceremonial first pitch at a local game—alongside his wife, Lori Huang, who sported the same jersey. Chey arrived ten minutes later, exchanging high-fives with Huang before settling at a central table.
The executives were joined by key SK leaders, including SK Hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung, SK Telecom CEO Chung Jae-heon, and SKT AI CIC Head Chung Seok-geun, as well as Nvidia Senior Director Madison Huang and her fiancé.
The gathering quickly morphed into an impromptu fan event. Huang and Chey moved around the restaurant, signing autographs for citizens—including a child wearing a custom t-shirt featuring the two executives' faces—and posing for photos. The group shared fried chicken and toasted with "somaek," a popular Korean cocktail of soju and beer.
Taking the lively atmosphere to the streets, Huang stepped outside to hand out boxes of fried chicken to reporters and citizens. Chey and the SK executives followed suit, distributing traditional sweet rice beverage (sikhye) and a promotional snack playfully modeled after HBM chips.
"I want more HBM!" Huang joked to the crowd as Chey distributed the HBM-themed snacks.
Despite the heavyweight corporate lineup, the executives downplayed any immediate strategic discussions. "It wasn't an atmosphere for business talk today; we just engaged in small talk," SK Hynix CEO Kwak said. "We talked about which chicken was delicious." Kwak reportedly picked up the tab for the evening's gathering.
The choice of venue was deeply personal for the two leaders. According to Chey, Huang strongly insisted they visit the fried chicken franchise together because Huang had been disappointed that Chey was absent from a similar informal gathering at the same chain last year. "It's not me who was disappointed, it was Jensen," Chey told reporters regarding last year's absence.
Following Sunday's casual diplomacy, the executives will shift to official business. Huang is scheduled to visit the SK Seorin Building in central Seoul on Monday morning for further discussions with Chey. On Monday evening, Huang will host the "Korea AI Ecosystem Reception" at the Shilla Hotel to meet with domestic AI partners and enterprises.
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