Alibaba Cloud’s second data center to launch in South Korea
The development is part of Alibaba's RMB380 billion (US$53 billion) investment plan in AI and cloud infrastructure, announced earlier this year.
Alibaba Cloud will launch its second data center in South Korea by the end of June 2025 as the Chinese cloud company looks to response to the growing demand for cloud computing and AI services from local businesses in the country.
This development is part of Alibaba's RMB380 billion (US$53 billion) investment plan in AI and cloud infrastructure, announced earlier this year. This year alone, Alibaba Cloud has also launched its second data center in Thailand and its first data center in Mexico.
In South Korea, the first Alibaba Cloud data center opened in 2022 with the second one expected to cater more towards the demand for greater AI infrastructure as South Korean businesses increase their GenAI adoption. The new data center also enables Alibaba Cloud to broaden its product offerings to include a wider selection of cloud-native, big data, and database products that better support customers' AI applications.
This includes providing significant improvements in cloud resilience and network performance, along with enhanced capabilities for high availability and disaster recovery for core cloud products.
According to Yoon Yong-joon, Country Manager of South Korea, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence, Alibaba Cloud has been continuously expanding its infrastructure in South Korea in line with the rapid advancement of AI-based technologies and increasing digital demand across industries.
“Through the launch of this second data center, Alibaba Cloud will provide customers with more resilient and adaptable cloud environments, ultimately fostering AI innovation across various sectors and expanding the digital ecosystem,” said Yoon.
Building a local ecosystem
Having established its presence in South Korea since 2016, Alibaba Cloud has been working with partners to offer scalable, secure and cost-effective services, especially in driving digital transformation for a large variety of industries in South Korea while supporting their global expansion outside of South Korea. Some of them have leveraged Alibaba Cloud’s flagship large language model Qwen and its scalable global cloud infrastructure to deliver innovative solutions.
Among its partners in South Korea is Univa. The leading local AI solutions provider recently unveiled its 'Agent AI' solution, powered by Alibaba Cloud's generative AI technology and robust cloud infrastructure. A critical factor in selecting Qwen was its exceptional performance in Korean language processing, ensuring that Univa's new solution effectively addresses the specific needs of the Korean market.
“Our collaboration with Alibaba Cloud has been pivotal in turning our vision into reality. Its cutting-edge cloud and AI technology has not only reduced costs by over 30%, but also enhanced Korean language processing accuracy from 45% to 95%,” said Nam MyungJin, CEO of Univa.
Other AI use cases developed include the use of Alibaba Cloud’s advanced AI video generation model. Snow, a subsidiary of Naver, leverages Alibaba Cloud’s advanced AI video generation model Wan to support its app’s image stylization function in China. Powered by Wan’s technology, Snow's innovative app offers users a wide range of preset styles and the ability to upload custom style templates. This versatile functionality enables the creation of highly personalized portraits tailored to meet unique specifications, providing users with an unparalleled portrait stylization experience.
Lala Station, a leading Korean livestreaming company, has successfully expanded its business into the Southeast Asian market through a collaboration with Alibaba Cloud that began in 2022. By leveraging Alibaba Cloud’s advanced cloud technologies and a comprehensive e-commerce livestreaming solution, Lala Station has developed its global livestreaming platform with robust capabilities.
Lee Cheol-ho, CEO of Lala Station stated that Alibaba Cloud’s strong global infrastructure enabled them to provide not only a rich and seamless online shopping experience for Korean consumers, but also for customers in Southeast Asia. This enabled Lala Station to scale its operations and enhance engagement with its audience across diverse markets.
Strong local partnerships
Leading South Korean partners such as Megazone Soft, ETECH SYSTEM and ITCENCLOIT continue to deliver tailored consulting services and industry-specific solutions with Alibaba Cloud.
MegazoneSoft Corporation, a leading cloud and AI solution provider in the Asia Pacific region, is collaborating with Alibaba Cloud to further expand its presence across key markets.
Mintaek Suh, EVP of MegazoneSoft stated that they are able to bring unmatched cloud and AI expertise and a deep understanding of complex digital transformations as the collaboration with Alibaba Cloud enables them to help customers who are increasingly asking for scalable hybrid and multi-cloud solutions that are tailored to the evolving needs of businesses in this region.
As the world’s leading and Asia Pacific’s leading Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) service provider, Alibaba Cloud has also received the Korea Information Security Management System (K-ISMS) certification for its data center infrastructure in South Korea in December 2023. The certification ensures that Alibaba Cloud’s services and practices are in line with stringent compliance regulations and enables enterprise customers to enjoy cloud services with enhanced protection.