The Theme of SK Icheon Forum This Year is 'Expansion of the AI Ecosystem'

Experts from various fields to attend until the 21st... Discussions on internalizing SKMS spirit and more

SK Seorin Building

SK Group is exploring ways to expand the AI ecosystem and internalize the SKMS spirit through its representative knowledge management platform, the 'Icheon Forum.'

On the 19th, SK Group announced that it held the opening ceremony of 'Icheon Forum 2024' at the Walkerhill Hotel in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, kicking off a three-day schedule until the 21st.

Now in its 8th year, this year's Icheon Forum will focus intensively on the AI field. Earlier, at the management strategy meeting held in June, SK Group revealed bold investment plans in AI and semiconductor sectors. During the forum, SK will review the industrial landscape reshaped by AI transition and the resulting business opportunities and threats, and collaborate with experts from various AI fields to further refine the AI value chain it is pursuing.

The main agenda of this Icheon Forum includes ▲ exploring successful value creation methods during the AI ecosystem expansion process ▲ change management systems to promote AI-based DT (digital transformation) ▲ innovation in the working methods of members in the AI era. Alongside this, there will be member discussion sessions aimed at enhancing the practical power of SK Group’s unique management philosophy, SKMS. This reflects the judgment that internalizing the SKMS spirit is necessary to navigate the unpredictable management challenges posed by the rapidly changing AI market.

The first day’s AI-themed schedule on the 19th will be attended by SK Chairman Chey Tae-won, SK Senior Vice Chairman Chey Jae-won, SK Supex Council Chairman Chey Chang-won, key executives of affiliates, and outside directors. Additionally, about 100 participants including leaders from various AI sectors, the Center for Social Value Enhancement Studies (CSES), the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Ulsan Chamber of Commerce and Industry will attend. Notably, many CEOs from companies belonging to the ‘K-AI Alliance,’ a domestic promising AI startup coalition led by SK Telecom, will also participate to propose ways to revitalize the AI ecosystem.

The opening on the first day will be led by SK Telecom President Yoo Young-sang. SK Telecom is pursuing goals to strengthen the competitiveness of AI new growth businesses and complete the AI transition of its existing telecommunications business.

Following this, the first session titled ‘How to Prepare for the Coming AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) Era?’ will be held. J?rgen Schmidhuber, professor at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia and known as the ‘Father of Modern AI,’ will deliver the opening keynote speech. Professor Schmidhuber will share trends observed in countries leading the global AI industry such as the U.S. and Europe, and discuss with attendees ways to enhance corporate competitiveness in the AGI era.

The second session, ‘SK’s Successful AI Business Promotion,’ will feature Zack Kass, former OpenAI GTM executive, who will present execution strategies for capturing business opportunities during the expansion of the AI industry ecosystem. Yoo Kyung-sang, head of enterprise strategy at SK Telecom, will also present on the overall status of SK Group’s AI business. Subsequent sessions will include opinions on ‘Change Management Systems to Promote AI-based DT’ from Yoon Poong-young, president of SK C&C, and Jim H. Snabe, chairman of Siemens’ board.

Discussions will also continue on how to innovate ‘the working methods of members’ in line with the AI era. Key cases of projects where members participated to find ways to improve individual work productivity using generative AI will be introduced.

On the second day, the 20th, time will be dedicated to enhancing understanding and empathy toward SKMS, SK Group’s core management philosophy. Each member company will hold workshops to share the basic concepts and practical cases of SKMS. The purpose is to revisit SKMS, which has served as a focal point at turning points in the management environment, and to hear directly from members about practical measures to overcome management challenges faced by each company, thereby increasing SKMS execution power on the front lines.

On the final day, the 21st, Chairman Chey Tae-won will review the forum’s achievements with members and gather wisdom for the daily practice of AI and SKMS. The three-day Icheon Forum will conclude with Chairman Chey’s closing speech.

The Icheon Forum was initiated in 2017 when Chairman Chey Tae-won proposed the need for a knowledge platform to prepare for rapidly changing management environments and gain insight. Since then, it has served as a forum where world-renowned scholars and internal and external experts gather to share opinions on global economic trends and innovative technologies, and discuss future business directions linked to these topics.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.