Samsung Electronics and five other Samsung affiliates are investing a combined $1 billion in Helix Digital Infrastructure, adding the South Korean group to a growing pool of capital targeting the data centers, power systems and connectivity required for artificial intelligence workloads.
Under the investment Samsung Electronics will contribute $500 million. Samsung C&T, Samsung SDS, Samsung SDI, Samsung Life Insurance and Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance will collectively provide the remaining $500 million.
Helix was established by global investment firm KKR and launched in June 2026 with more than $10 billion in committed capital. The company is focused on financing, developing and managing infrastructure for large technology companies, spanning hyperscale data centers, power generation, electricity transmission and distribution, fiber networks and other connectivity infrastructure.
Samsung Broadens Its Exposure to AI Infrastructure
The $1 billion commitment brings together Samsung businesses operating across several parts of the data center supply chain rather than concentrating the investment within its semiconductor division alone. Samsung Electronics supplies chips and cooling technology, while Samsung C&T has engineering and construction capabilities covering data centers and power projects.
Samsung SDS adds another part of that chain through its data center operations and IT services. The company designs, builds and operates data centers and has also moved into GPU-as-a-Service, a model that gives customers access to graphics processing capacity without requiring them to own the underlying hardware.
Energy storage represents another area of potential involvement. Samsung SDI produces battery systems that can be used in uninterruptible power supplies and battery backup units, technologies designed to maintain power availability for facilities operating high-performance computing equipment around the clock.
Cooling has also become a larger part of Samsung's infrastructure business. Samsung Electronics completed its acquisition of HVAC specialist FläktGroup in November 2025, giving the company additional exposure to commercial and industrial cooling. The acquisition announcement specifically identified data centers among the markets it intends to address through the business.
Helix Links Data Centers With Power and Connectivity
Helix was formally launched on June 11, 2026, with KKR, the Kuwait Investment Authority, NVIDIA and U.S. power company Vistra as founding investors. Its initial capital commitments exceeded $10 billion. Samsung's new $1 billion commitment adds another substantial investor to that capital base.
Rather than treating a data center as an isolated property development, Helix's model brings data centers, electricity infrastructure and network connectivity under one platform. The approach reflects a practical constraint facing large AI computing projects: adding servers and accelerators requires corresponding access to power, cooling and high-capacity network infrastructure.
Former Amazon Web Services CEO Adam Selipsky leads Helix as chief executive and co-founder. NVIDIA is a strategic technology partner to the company, while Vistra serves as its preferred power provider. Helix says it intends to invest in and manage AI-enabling infrastructure in North America as well as other international markets.
KKR and Helix said Samsung's investment would provide additional long-duration capital for data centers, power, connectivity and related infrastructure. The companies also expect to examine potential cooperation involving Samsung's technology, construction, energy storage and cooling capabilities.
Power Becomes Part of the AI Investment Equation
The investment illustrates how the physical requirements behind AI are extending spending well beyond processors. Large computing facilities also depend on electricity generation and grid connections, backup power, cooling equipment, buildings and fiber connectivity, creating investment requirements across industries that historically operated as separate parts of the technology and utility sectors.
Helix has been structured around that overlap. Vistra's role gives the company a direct relationship with a U.S. electricity producer, while NVIDIA provides expertise tied to accelerated computing infrastructure. Samsung, meanwhile, potentially brings components and services ranging from semiconductors and batteries to construction and cooling.
Samsung has already been allocating capital toward some of those adjacent areas. In August, the company announced plans to invest approximately $158 million (KRW 240 billion) in a new FläktGroup HVAC production line in Gwangju, South Korea. The facility, scheduled for completion by 2028, is expected to manufacture equipment including cooling systems for AI data centers.
The Helix commitment does not mean Samsung will itself operate every element of an AI data center project. Instead, the six participating affiliates give the group exposure to several infrastructure categories that Helix expects to coordinate as it develops projects for hyperscale customers.
Samsung's investment follows Helix's launch with more than $10 billion already committed by its founding investors. KKR said that it has invested more than $75 billion across digital infrastructure and power globally, providing a broader investment platform behind the newly created company.
Helix is designed around long-duration capital, an important feature for infrastructure projects whose construction and operating periods can stretch across many years. KKR described the company as a way to coordinate financing and development across data centers, electricity and connectivity rather than requiring hyperscale customers to arrange each component independently.
Samsung's $1 billion commitment marks an expansion of its involvement in AI beyond chips and computing hardware.
