Korea Telecom (KT) is partnering with digital infrastructure investment firm DigitalBridge for data centers in APAC.

KT this week announced that it has signed a business agreement with DigitalBridge regarding an “AI data center business to respond to the growing demand for AI services."

“Through this collaboration, both companies plan to proactively prepare for the expected rapid growth in AI data center demand in the Asia-Pacific region, with the goal of building domestic AI data center infrastructure,” KT said.

“KT and DigitalBridge will pursue joint development of domestic AI data centers, cooperation in overseas data center projects, and sharing data center ESG technologies through this agreement.”

Further details on any planned data centers weren’t shared.

Ahn Tae-eun, head of Asia-Pacific at DigitalBridge, said: "In the era of AI, AI data centers are becoming a core infrastructure for national and corporate competitiveness. This collaboration will be the first step toward proactively responding to the AI ​​demands of global tech companies in the Asia-Pacific region, leveraging the data center business experience and capabilities of both companies."

KT's head of strategy and business consulting, Woojin Jeong, added: "As the use of AI expands in industry and daily life, we are reviewing various response measures to secure stable and efficient AI data centers. KT, together with DigitalBridge, will actively explore opportunities for global AI data centers, including domestic AI data centers, and provide optimal services that can meet the needs of various customers in the future."

DigitalBridge is present in APAC through Vantage and AIMS. Neither company currently has any facilities in South Korea.

KT Corp operates around a dozen data centers across South Korea. Founded in 1981, the firm launched its first facility through its KT IDC unit in HyeHwa IDC in 1999. The company also operates the KT Cloud platform.