Korea's No.1 carrier pivoting into AI infrastructure
SK Telecom
SK Telecom is Korea's largest mobile operator, with 5G subscribers above 75% of its base. On that connectivity business it is stacking AI data centers, a GPU cloud (GPUaaS) and its own AI assistant A-dot, moving from telco to AI-infrastructure company. As an SK Group affiliate it is the domestic bridge in an AI value chain that runs through SK hynix HBM and NVIDIA GPUs. Unlike a pure consumer name, here a telecom wires into the AI chain.
017670.KS Updated Jul 12, 2026 4 AI consumers· 1 recurring
Per the valuechain.wiki graph, SK Telecom is directly linked to 2 companies (2 supply, 0 revenue relationships) and reaches 35 companies within two hops; the links are backed by 3 dated sources, 1 of them primary filings (as of 2026-07-12).
Financials & Segments
- Total revenue · FY2025 consolidated revenue KRW 17.10T (-4.7%), operating profit KRW 1.07T (-41%, hit by the 2025 SIM-hack incident). 5G subscribers 75%+.
- Customer concentration · The only Korean-consumer-batch node that stacks AI infrastructure (GPUaaS, SK hynix HBM, NVIDIA GPUs) on its telecom core. The 2025 SIM-hack cut ~KRW 800B of revenue.
- Segments · Wireless & wired (MNO) · Enterprise & cloud · AI data center & AI · Media
Revenue from
- 이동통신 가입자 (MNO) High confidence· Revenue 17.1조원 · FY2025 · consolidated revenue
Wireless and wired telecom core, with 5G subscribers above 75%; the base of its high-dividend, low-volatility cash flow. - 엔터프라이즈·AI 데이터센터 (GPUaaS) Medium confidence
Enterprise and cloud (+30%) plus AI data centers (GPUaaS, A-dot), extending telecom into AI infrastructure.Confirms EN The Korea Herald Published Jan 13, 2025: SKT GPUaaS runs on NVIDIA H100, first H200 in Korea
Pays to
- NVIDIA High confidence
Launched GPUaaS on NVIDIA H100 and introduced H200 first in Korea; the SK Group AI Factory runs 50,000+ NVIDIA GPUs with a gigawatt-scale Ulsan AI data center. SKT is an NVIDIA Cloud Partner.Confirms EN The Korea Herald Published Jan 13, 2025: SKT GPUaaS runs on NVIDIA H100, first H200 in Korea - 주파수·네트워크 설비 (비공개) Medium confidence
Spectrum fees and base-station/network capex. - SK hynix Medium confidence
SK Group affiliate collaboration: a Jan 2025 CES agreement with SK hynix and Penguin Solutions for joint AI data-center R&D, with SK hynix HBM in SKT's Pangyo AI data-center testbed (not a shareholding; SK hynix's largest holder is SK Square).Confirms EN SK hynix Published Jan 10, 2025: SK hynix partners with SKT and Penguin Solutions to drive AI data center business
Value-chain ripple (2 tiers)
Following node-to-node links up to 2 tiers; each firm is shown once, at its nearest tier.
| Company | Chain | '21 | '22 | '23 | '24 | '25 | YTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SK Telecom | node | +7.9 | -12 | +15.8 | +15.5 | +37.5 | +23.4 |
| NVIDIA | benef1 | +125.5 | -50.3 | +239 | +171.2 | +38.9 | +13.3 |
| Kioxia | benef2 | · | · | · | · | +1082.1 | +260.5 |
| Micron Technology | benef2 | +24.2 | -45.9 | +71.9 | -1 | +240.2 | +243.3 |
| Murata Manufacturing | benef2 | -14 | -11.7 | +24.7 | -16.5 | +29.9 | +217.4 |
| Nan Ya PCB | benef2 | +110.6 | -46.7 | -0.5 | -38.3 | +188.2 | +213.4 |
| ASE Technology | benef2 | +38.3 | -12.8 | +60.9 | +10.1 | +65.6 | +167.6 |
| Nebius Group | benef2 | · | · | · | · | +202.2 | +162.4 |
| Astera Labs | benef2 | · | · | · | · | +25.6 | +148.2 |
| Ibiden | benef2 | +30.4 | -19.6 | +51.6 | -38.6 | +261 | +147.1 |
| SK hynix | benef2 | -0.4 | -25.6 | +53.9 | +48.6 | +361.1 | +140.3 |
| Unimicron | benef2 | +133.5 | -30.2 | +35.2 | -19.7 | +175.7 | +131.6 |
| Corning | benef2 | +5.9 | -11.6 | -1.2 | +60.6 | +87.8 | +118.8 |
| Lumentum | benef2 | +11.6 | -50.7 | +0.5 | +60.1 | +339.1 | +117.6 |
| Samsung Electronics | benef2 | -9 | -14.2 | +20.9 | -26.4 | +212.9 | +77.9 |
| onsemi | benef2 | +107.5 | -8.2 | +33.9 | -24.5 | -14.1 | +77.2 |
| Coherent | benef2 | -10 | -48.6 | +24 | +117.6 | +94.8 | +75.8 |
| Eoptolink | benef2 | -10.1 | -27.7 | +136.6 | +197 | +368.8 | +74.9 |
| InnoLight | benef2 | -30.7 | -18.3 | +253.7 | +12 | +468.1 | +68.8 |
| Keysight Technologies | benef2 | +56.3 | -17.2 | -7 | +1 | +26.5 | +58.5 |
| Delta Electronics | benef2 | -3.4 | +10.4 | -0.3 | +59.2 | +183.8 | +54.9 |
| Monolithic Power | benef2 | +35.5 | -27.8 | +79.8 | -5.6 | +54.5 | +49.8 |
| Analog Devices | benef2 | +21 | -4.9 | +23.4 | +8.8 | +29.8 | +46.7 |
| TSMC | benef2 | +12.1 | -36.7 | +42.3 | +92.6 | +55.9 | +43.6 |
| ABB | benef2 | +23.9 | +7.3 | +18.9 | +39 | +36.1 | +27.2 |
| Pegatron | benef2 | -5.9 | +0.6 | +35.3 | +21.2 | -23.8 | +24 |
| Luxshare Precision | benef2 | -11.9 | -30.2 | -21.2 | +58.8 | +29.3 | +20.6 |
| Digital Realty | benef2 | +30.7 | -41 | +39.9 | +35.9 | -10.1 | +18.2 |
| Amphenol | benef2 | +34.9 | -12 | +31.5 | +41.3 | +96.1 | +18.1 |
| Wistron | benef2 | +7.9 | +9.7 | +272.7 | -1.6 | +22.7 | +14.8 |
| King Yuan Electronics (KYEC) | benef2 | +26.7 | -7.7 | +132.4 | +38.6 | +171 | +4.2 |
| BlackRock | benef2 | +29.4 | -20.4 | +17.9 | +29.3 | +6.6 | -2.1 |
| TE Connectivity | benef2 | +35.1 | -27.7 | +24.6 | +3.5 | +61.1 | -11.3 |
| Recursion Pharmaceuticals | benef2 | · | -55 | +27.9 | -31.4 | -39.5 | -13 |
| BYD Electronics | benef2 | -56.1 | +16 | -0.4 | +60.6 | -19.4 | -34.4 |
YTD as of 2026-07-10 · source: Yahoo Finance
SK Telecom's thesis is 'stacking AI infrastructure on top of a high-dividend telecom cash cow.' While the 5G-75%+ core delivers low-volatility cash flow, GPUaaS (NVIDIA H100/H200), AI data centers and the A-dot assistant make it the domestic bridge in the SK Group AI value chain (SK hynix HBM -> NVIDIA GPU) — unlike a pure consumer name, a telecom wired into the AI chain. But the 2025 SIM-hacking fallout cut operating profit -41% (revenue down ~KRW 0.8T), so restoring trust in the core comes first, and the AI pivot is still an early option with small revenue contribution. What to watch is the pace of monetizing GPUaaS and the Ulsan AI data center, and subscriber/margin stability.
Analysis generated from returns as of 2026-07-10Analyst ratings
Consensus: Buy 2 · Hold 1 · Sell 0 · Avg. target ₩111,000 · Price ₩88,700 (07-10) · Upside +25%
| Broker | Rating | Target | Published | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KB Securities | Buy | ₩150,000 | Jun 11, 2026 | Report ↗ |
| Yuanta Securities Korea | BUY | ₩118,000 | Apr 20, 2026 | Report ↗ |
| BNK Investment & Securities | Hold | ₩65,000 | Feb 2, 2026 | Report ↗ |
Korean brokers have sharply raised targets through 2026 on AI data-center and GPUaaS monetization (KB KRW 150,000, Yuanta KRW 118,000), while BNK stays at a more conservative Hold.
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