Samsung SDS breaks ground on 60MW AI data center in Gumi

Samsung SDS has started building a 60 MW AI data center in Gumi, South Korea. The site will serve industrial robots, generative AI, and cloud workloads.

It is also the first tangible piece of Samsung Group’s KRW 60 trillion investment pledge.

What Samsung is building, and where

The groundbreaking ceremony took place on November 2, 2026. The facility sits in Gongdan-dong, Gumi, in North Gyeongsang Province.

The land has a history. It was formerly Samsung Electronics Gumi Plant 1, so a site that once made hardware will now host the machines that run AI models.

The site covers approximately 46,280 square meters. Initial power capacity is set at 60 MW, with room to expand to 120 MW.

Samsung SDS is putting KRW 427.3 billion, about $319 million, into the project. Its board approved the investment in January 2026.

The schedule is long but specific. Completion is expected by December 2028, with operations targeted for March 2029.

The technical pitch: GPUs, cooling, and colocation

The center will use a hybrid cooling system that pairs air cooling with liquid cooling. The design targets high-density GPU servers, the hardware that does the heavy lifting for AI processing.

The facility is not just an internal tool. It will serve Samsung affiliates as well as outside clients.

Two service models are planned. Samsung SDS will offer in-house GPU services, essentially renting out AI computing power, and colocation, where customers bring their own servers and pay for space, power, and cooling.

Samsung SDS CEO Lee Jun-hee has stressed that strong infrastructure is a prerequisite for getting meaningful results from AI.

How this fits Samsung’s KRW 60 trillion plan

Samsung Group unveiled the KRW 60 trillion plan, approximately $44.6 billion to $44.9 billion, in July 2026. The stated goal is to turn the Yeongnam region into a global hub for AI innovation.

The Gumi data center is the first concrete step under that umbrella. Measured against the full pledge, Samsung SDS’s KRW 427.3 billion commitment is a modest opening move.

Samsung SDS signed a memorandum of understanding with Gumi City and North Gyeongsang Province during CES 2026. Gumi City then granted construction approvals in late August 2026. Roughly two months later, the shovels came out.