Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang presents the 'GeForce RTX 5090' graphics card from Nvidia to player Lee Sang-hyeok (Faker) at 'T1 Base Camp' in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on the 5th. [Joint Coverage]

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang praised Korea's gaming culture and esports competitiveness, visiting a PC bang as his first destination in South Korea.

Huang met with the T1 team, including professional gamer Lee Sang-hyeok (Faker), at the T1 PC bang near Hongik University Station in Seoul on the afternoon of the 5th, stating, "Korea is the optimal market for esports."

He remarked, "Korea is the birthplace of esports. Korea invented esports and created a culture of watching esports," adding, "Korean gamers chose the best Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) to win, and that has been Nvidia's GPU."

He continued, "Korea has been a special country to me for a long time, and I am grateful to all of you who have supported Nvidia for so long."

Huang met with Faker and stood side-by-side on stage, engaging in conversation.

Huang asked Faker about the model of graphics card he uses, and when Faker replied, "I use the RTX 4070," Huang jokingly called it "an antique" and presented him with a GeForce RTX 5090 graphics processing unit (GPU) bearing his autograph.

Huang and Faker then signed the GPU and gifted it to a randomly selected attendee.

Jensen Huang CEO receives a souvenir signed by Faker [Yonhap News]

Faker presented Huang with a jersey signed by himself and took a commemorative photo with the team.

Huang shook hands with fans who visited the PC bang and posed for selfies.

Huang also gifted two attendees with vouchers for 'RTX Spark,' a gaming laptop developed in-house, as prizes through a raffle.

Huang explained, "Three years ago, I discussed with Microsoft (MS) CEO Satya Nadella about 'reinventing the PC,' and we created the 'RTX Spark' through a new design," adding, "RTX Spark is a new generation of PC that encompasses laptops, desktops, and workstations."

He then handed black cards with his signature to the lucky fans, saying, "I will exchange these for you when RTX Spark is released in the fall."

We are all Faker [Seoul=Yonhap News]

After spending about 40 minutes with fans and the T1 team at the PC bang, Huang left for his next destination without answering questions from the press.

Faker met with reporters after the event and said, "It was a very meaningful time meeting with CEO Jensen Huang." He added, "Graphics cards are very important to us gamers. I believe many people have helped us succeed as professional gamers."

He also commented, "We didn't have much time to talk, but it was good just to spend time together."

Huang, who entered the country through Gimpo Airport earlier in the day, is scheduled to have a dinner meeting with major Korean business leaders at 'Hyungnim Jeoyo,' a samgyeopsal restaurant near Hongik University Station, in the evening.

Attendees are expected to include SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, and Naver Chairman Lee Hae-jin.

Participants are expected to discuss a wide range of cooperation plans in areas such as AI semiconductors, robotics, physical AI, and AI data center infrastructure over "samgyeopsal and soju" (samso) meals.

Jensen Huang visits PC bang, stating "Korea is an optimal market for esports" [Provided by Yonhap News TV]