Naver signs $9 billion Brookfield compute deal, clearing Nvidia investment condition

Naver’s October 27 agreement with Brookfield secures $9 billion of computing infrastructure and meets a prerequisite for Nvidia’s equity investment. GPUs and data centers will supply Naver Cloud. Naver plans to complete the share allotment promptly.

Brookfield’s proposed vehicle will invest up to $9 billion. Naver and Naver Cloud will lead the AI factory business, while Naver Cloud supplies AI data center services to customers and pays usage fees linked to business revenue. Nvidia will collaborate on technology centered on its next-generation DSX computing platform.

The companies’ July joint announcement described production-scale computing for Korean and US AI developers, enterprises and government, with planned infrastructure that anticipated Vera Rubin and Blackwell platforms for the planned 200 MW installation.

The amended business-plan filing says Brookfield’s wholly funded Asset Co. will supply GPU services for Naver Cloud to resell. Under Korean accounting standards, Naver expects to control and consolidate Asset Co.

A separate filing sets Naver’s payment guarantee at 18.74 trillion won. This is the nominal total of supply payments assuming the full $9 billion investment limit is deployed through the longest contract term, ending in 2034. No payment obligation was fixed at disclosure; timing, interest rates, exchange rates and cost settlements can change the amount.

GPU investment will proceed in batches according to demand, with payment obligations lasting six years from each batch’s payment commencement. The guarantee also covers damages and penalties that are presently unquantifiable and excluded from the stated total. The investment and operating agreement is signed; GPU supply and outsourced-operation contracts remain planned.

GAK Sejong is the first planned hub. Tentative capacity targets are 55 megawatts in the first half of 2027, a cumulative 100 MW by year-end, and 200 MW in 2028, followed by gigawatt-scale expansion. Naver says the schedule remains under discussion and may change with electricity availability, permits, infrastructure supply and contract terms.

An October 27 related-party filing estimates Naver Cloud’s guarantee fees to Naver at 670.725 billion won over the contract, using a 0.4375% annual rate and full investment deployment. Transactions, guarantee scope and tax review may alter the total. The privately negotiated agreement received board approval and was signed October 27. Its term, through December 31, 2034, can change with supply timing.

The July 27 share-issue filing required at least $9 billion of infrastructure to be secured separately from Nvidia’s subscription money. It specifies a $1 billion subscription and an issue price of 204,500 won per share. The shares carry a one-year withdrawal and sale restriction after mandatory registration. Proceeds fund AI factory development.

That filing lists October 30 for payment and November 20 for listing as extendable contractual deadlines. The final share count and won proceeds depend on an agreed exchange-rate formula and subsequent disclosure. Naver’s October 27 statement says further share-issue details will follow.