South Korean President Lee Jae Myung concluded a two-day visit to San Francisco on Saturday, 26 July, focused on deepening artificial intelligence cooperation with global technology leaders, before departing for Brazil as the first leg of a three-nation South America tour. The visit marked one of the most commercially significant diplomatic stops of Lee's presidency, with billions of dollars in technology partnerships announced.

Key Meetings with Global Tech Chiefs

During his Friday and Saturday engagements in San Francisco, President Lee met the heads of four major global technology companies, including OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman and Nvidia Corp. CEO Jensen Huang. Lee called for stronger partnerships between these firms and South Korean companies in the field of AI, framing the outreach as a strategic extension of the South Korea–US relationship.

At a separate high-level meeting attended by Lee, global technology giants and South Korean conglomerates agreed to pursue cooperation projects with a combined value of USD 950 billion, according to reports. The centrepiece is a long-term supply agreement under which SK Group will provide USD 750 billion worth of high-performance semiconductors to Nvidia and other partners.

Lee's Vision: Tech Alliance Beyond Security Ties

Speaking at a Silicon Valley meeting with venture capitalists on Saturday, President Lee articulated a broader ambition for the bilateral relationship. 'South Korea and the US should expand the scope of their cooperation beyond the longstanding security alliance to include technology, innovation and startups,' Lee said.

He argued that combining US venture capital capacity and global networks with South Korea's advanced technology and manufacturing competitiveness could produce the next generation of global innovators — citing existing chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK hynix as benchmarks for what such collaboration could yield.

South America Tour: Brazil, Chile, Argentina

Lee departed San Francisco for Brazil on Saturday, beginning a four-day state visit from Sunday. The itinerary includes a bilateral summit with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the capital Brasília on Monday, followed by a business roundtable in São Paulo on Tuesday.

After Brazil, the President will travel to Chile and Argentina, completing his South American schedule by 1 August. The tour is expected to centre on strengthening cooperation in critical minerals and supply chains — sectors where South Korea has a strategic interest given its semiconductor and EV manufacturing base.

Return via Frankfurt

On 2 August, President Lee will make a stopover in Frankfurt, Germany, where he is scheduled to meet with South Korean residents before returning home on 3 August. The Frankfurt leg is a routine diaspora engagement rather than a formal state visit.

The San Francisco–South America itinerary underlines Seoul's push to diversify its technology and resource partnerships at a time when global supply chain realignments are accelerating.