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SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won (pictured) has been named chairman of the board of HYAICO, a new U.S.-based artificial intelligence (AI) investment company. /Courtesy of SK Group

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has taken the role of chairman of the board of HYAICO Corporation (HYAICO), SK hynix's U.S.-based artificial intelligence (AI) investment company. HYAICO was created by converting Solidigm, formerly SK hynix's NAND flash subsidiary, into an AI investment company. It is taking over existing investment assets and positioning itself as the group's U.S. AI investment hub. Analysts say the company's standing within the group has been further strengthened by the addition of senior executives from major affiliates, including SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung and SK Telecom CEO Jung Jae-heon, to its board.

According to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday, Chey was listed as Chairman of the Board of HYAICO in an exhibit to a Schedule 13D beneficial ownership report concerning Penguin Solutions filed by SK hynix and other entities on Nov. 3.

HYAICO's chief executive officer (CEO) is Song Hyun-jong, president and head of the Corporate Center at SK hynix, who previously served as chief strategy officer (CSO) at SK Telecom. Song also serves as a director of HYAICO. In addition to Chey and Song, the five-member board comprises former SK hynix Vice Chairman Park Sung-wook, SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung and SK Telecom CEO Jung Jae-heon.

HYAICO is a company whose establishment SK hynix announced on Jan. 28. SK hynix renamed its existing U.S. NAND subsidiary, SK hynix NAND Product Solutions Corp., as HYAICO and assigned it responsibility for AI investments. The NAND flash and enterprise solid-state drive (SSD) businesses previously operated by the existing entity were transferred to a newly established subsidiary, Solidigm Inc., in the first quarter of this year.

SK hynix has announced plans to invest up to $10 billion in HYAICO. The investment will be made through a capital call arrangement, under which funds are contributed whenever HYAICO requests capital for investments. SK hynix plans to use HYAICO to invest initially in software technologies that improve AI system performance before expanding its investments across the broader AI data center sector.

In particular, the latest filing shows that HYAICO is taking over AI-related investment assets. On Oct. 29, its indirectly wholly owned subsidiary, SHIFTIX1 LLC, acquired 200,000 shares of convertible preferred stock in Penguin Solutions from Astra AI Infra LLC, an entity under SK Telecom, for approximately $377.16 million.

Penguin Solutions is a U.S. company that designs and builds computing systems for AI data centers and is a partner in which SK Telecom had entered into a $200 million investment agreement. SK Telecom has been working with Penguin Solutions to expand its overseas AI data center business and jointly develop next-generation memory solutions. Through the latest transaction, HYAICO also succeeded to the rights previously granted to SK Telecom under the existing investment agreement. Accordingly, it can nominate candidates to Penguin Solutions' board of directors as long as it maintains a specified ownership stake.

With Chey leading the board and executives from SK hynix and SK Telecom serving alongside him, HYAICO is expected to play a role in connecting SK hynix's memory business with the AI data center businesses of other group affiliates.

Other SK Group affiliates have also committed capital to HYAICO. SK Inc. and SK Innovation have made capital commitments of $250 million and $380 million, respectively. SK Telecom also disclosed in June that it had committed to investing up to approximately 738.4 billion won and would acquire 642 newly issued shares in the existing Solidigm entity for approximately 397.1 billion won as its initial investment. The post-acquisition ownership stake calculated in the disclosure was 0.62%.

                                                                                                                Lee Ji-sun