Nvidia invests $1 billion to take a stake in Naver, becoming South Korea’s third-largest shareholder, upgrading its AI data center layout again

NVIDIA acquires a 4.5% stake in Naver for $1 billion through a third-party follow-on share placement. This is Naver’s first capital increase in 22 years since going public. After cancelling treasury shares to offset dilution, NVIDIA will become Naver’s third-largest shareholder.
(Background: NVIDIA and SK Group launch a $500 billion plan: 2GW AI data centers start in 2027, securing HBM4 supply)
(Additional background: Major news! NVIDIA pours $100 billion to cooperate with OpenAI and jointly build 10GW AI data centers; NVDA jumps 3.9%)

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• Naver also cancels treasury shares; NVIDIA rises to third-largest shareholder
• Not just buying shares: both sides signed GW-level AI factory deals in June
• NVIDIA’s Korea strategy: SK Group and Naver launch attacks on two fronts

UK-based NVIDIA and South Korean internet giant Naver formally signed a $1 billion strategic investment agreement. NVIDIA will obtain about 7.24 million new shares of Naver through a third-party follow-on placement, priced at 204,500 won per share (about $140), representing 4.5%. On Monday (July 27), Naver filed its registration documents with regulators, confirming this capital increase is its first since going public 22 years ago.

Naver also cancels treasury shares; NVIDIA rises to third-largest shareholder

To offset equity dilution from the issuance of new shares to existing shareholders, Naver announced it will cancel about 4.9 million treasury shares on August 3, with a total value of about 1 trillion won (about $76 million). After the cancellation, NVIDIA is expected to become Naver’s third-largest shareholder, behind South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) and BlackRock.

The first payment is expected to be made on October 30. On the 27th, Naver’s stock price surged 8% at the open, and the market response has been positive.

Not just buying shares: both sides signed GW-level AI factory deals in June

This equity investment is not an isolated event. In June, the two companies signed an agreement for joint development of GW-level AI factories, upgrading their relationship from a simple GPU supplier-and-customer to strategic partners building infrastructure together.

The Korea Economic Daily reported that Naver’s move reflects South Korean companies accelerating their “Sovereign AI” plans—an ecosystem of large AI model development led by local tech firms, trained on domestic languages and data. NVIDIA’s $1 billion investment essentially ties Naver’s GPU procurement and AI infrastructure demand through capital.

NVIDIA’s Korea strategy: SK Group and Naver launch attacks on two fronts

NVIDIA has recently been very active in the South Korean market. On July 25, NVIDIA and SK Group just announced a $50 billion plan, including a 2GW AI data center and an HBM4 memory supply agreement. Within just two days, it invested again in Naver, showing NVIDIA is using a combined play of “capital + chips + infrastructure” to lock in a long-term share of South Korea’s AI market.

Analysts say South Korea’s AI investment wave has shifted from the “chip procurement” stage to the “capital interlocking” stage. NVIDIA is not only selling GPUs—it is also securing long-term demand from future customers through equity investment.