KT Cloud to expand AI data center capacity to 1GW, CEO says

KT Cloud plans to expand its AI data center capacity to 1 gigawatt, positioning itself as an "AX infrastructure partner" that supports enterprise customers through every stage of their AI transformation.

KT Cloud CEO Kim Bong-gyun unveiled the company's AI transformation support roadmap Tuesday at the KT Cloud Summit 2026, held at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam-gu.

KT Cloud said it will supply more than 1GW of infrastructure across approximately 20 sites by 2031. On the cloud side, the company will consolidate multi- and hybrid cloud operating environments around its proprietary kt cloud PLATFORM, with plans to extend further into "Composite AI" — a framework that connects data, computing resources, AI models and applications into a single execution layer.

Kim said KT Cloud, as the provider of core AX infrastructure including cloud and AI data centers, will support customers in executing their AI transformation. In the cloud segment, the company will use its in-house kt cloud platform to help customers migrate to cloud environments suited to their specific needs and workflows. Technology and operational expertise validated in the public sector will be extended to private-sector clients, with the platform evolving to cover disaster recovery and AI workloads.

In the AI data center segment, KT Cloud will draw on its data center construction and operational experience to reliably handle large-scale AI workloads. The company plans to scale AIDC supply to 1GW and offer flexible configurations in terms of size and location to meet individual customer requirements.

The company also unveiled a "Composite Cloud" strategy for multi- and hybrid cloud environments, allowing customers to select and combine resources — spanning security, performance, cost and data — according to their needs. The Composite Cloud approach will expand into Composite AI, linking data, computing resources such as GPUs and NPUs, AI models, and applications and agents into a unified execution framework.

Alongside the capacity expansion, KT Cloud shared its broader AIDC strategy covering technology, networking and partnerships.

The company plans to build customer-tailored AI data centers in the Greater Seoul area and globally connected facilities outside the metropolitan region. Both will incorporate next-generation technologies including liquid cooling, ultra-high-density power systems and AI-driven intelligent operations. Digital twins, robots and Open Compute Project open standards will also be deployed to improve stability and operational efficiency.

A network strategy was also presented, using an ultra-low-latency backbone to connect geographically distributed AI data centers as a single unified infrastructure. KT Cloud additionally outlined plans to co-develop modular AI data centers by combining power and energy infrastructure with its own AIDC design, construction and operational capabilities.

KT Cloud introduced a range of technical topics at the summit, including direct-to-chip cooling, AIDC construction and operations strategy, kt cloud platform architecture, high-availability infrastructure and disaster recovery, and Kubernetes deployment. Rebellions, Ravel Up, Didim, Dell Technologies and Etech System, and EP Korea also showcased AX-related technologies and solutions.

"We will combine our accumulated cloud and AIDC technology and operational experience with the core AX infrastructure of the KT Group and the specialized expertise of our partners," Kim said. "We will work alongside customers from strategy planning through infrastructure construction, operations and optimization, ensuring that AI transformation translates into tangible business results."