"Both of our companies are all in on artificial intelligence."
NEW YORK — Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) Chairman Jay Y. Lee highlighted the AI alliance between his company and Nvidia as he delivered a congratulatory address for Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang, who received the 2026 Van Fleet Award at the Korea Society's annual gala here on the 28th. Huang was named this year's recipient in recognition of his leadership in the AI and semiconductor industries and his contributions to economic cooperation between South Korea and the United States.
"I don't think there is anyone better suited for this award than Jensen," Lee said. "He put his company at the center of everything happening in AI today, and he redefined what computing can do." He added that Huang is "now powering industries around the world while building a true partnership between the United States and Korea."
The event carried a personal resonance for Lee as well. His father, the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee, received the same Van Fleet Award exactly 20 years earlier, in 2006. The Korea Society at the time cited Samsung's investment in the United States and its contributions to advancing Korea-U.S. relations in presenting the award.
Lee also recounted his 25-year relationship with Huang. The two first met about 25 years ago at the Consumer Electronics Show in the United States. Looking back on Huang at the time, Lee said he was someone who "dreamed big and had the guts to back it up, and who gave everything to what he believed in."
Jokes reflecting the two executives' closeness followed. Lee listed three things they have in common: that Samsung Electronics and Nvidia are both "all in" on AI, that each has a daughter named Madison, and that both love innovation. Madison Huang, a senior director at Nvidia and Huang's eldest daughter, is also known to have arranged the so-called "chicken and beer" gathering last year that brought Lee and Huang together.
Closing his remarks, Lee congratulated Huang, calling him "a partner in a fast-changing industry and, above all, a longtime friend."
