On June 25, SK Telecom announced that it has initiated joint testing with local AI semiconductor startup Revelion to incorporate domestically developed Neural Processing Units (NPUs) into its core AI services. This collaboration marks a significant step toward strengthening Korea’s independent AI ecosystem.
This initiative focuses on the convergence of domestically produced large language models (LLMs) and AI semiconductors, representing a meaningful advance in Korea’s efforts for technological self-reliance in AI.
Currently, the two companies are testing servers equipped with Revelion’s AI data center processor, “Atom,” integrated into SK Telecom’s key services such as AiCall’s call summarization, PASS spam filtering and financial assistant, as well as Xcaliber. Based on the test results, SK Telecom is also considering deploying an enhanced high-performance version of Atom, called “Atom-Max,” into actual services within the year.
Based on ongoing testing, SK Telecom plans to gradually expand the adoption of Revelion’s NPU servers across its infrastructure. Notably, this collaboration is viewed as a crucial starting point for building a “Sovereign AI”—an AI system rooted entirely in domestic technology—by combining the country’s native LLM, “AI.DX” (A.X), with locally developed AI hardware.
The “AiCall Call Summarization” service features A.X 4.0, an LLM specially optimized for Korean language understanding and processing, developed entirely in Korea. If this service operates atop Revelion’s NPU, it will represent a fully domestically crafted AI service—from the language model to the computing hardware.
SK Telecom emphasizes that this cooperation aims to establish a self-sustaining Korea AI ecosystem. Lee Sang-min, head of SKT’s Growth Business Division, remarked, “Securing independence in AI technology is crucial for national competitiveness in this era of fierce AI technology race. SK Telecom will strengthen synergy across AI data centers, LLMs, and semiconductors, with domestic technological ecosystems.”
Park Sung-hyun, CEO of Revelion, also highlighted the significance of the partnership, stating, “This collaboration is a decisive milestone in realizing AI infrastructure sovereignty, beyond mere technological completion.”
This joint effort between SK Telecom and Revelion demonstrates the potential for Korean-developed AI technologies and semiconductors to reach real-world commercial applications, promising positive ripple effects throughout the domestic AI industry ecosystem.
