[DigitalToday reporter Chi-gyu Hwang] The Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) held an inauguration ceremony and symposium for the 2026 AI Data Centre Thermal Management Council on Wednesday at its main campus in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul.

About 300 people from more than 45 industry, university and research institutions attended, including Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and LG Electronics, as well as Seoul National University, Sungkyunkwan University, Yonsei University and the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI).

The AI Data Centre Thermal Management Council aims to standardise high-reliability, high-efficiency thermal management technologies for AI data centres and set technology roadmaps. It also aims to establish test and reliability criteria and push joint demonstration projects.

The council plans to strengthen the competitiveness of South Korea's AI data centre industry ecosystem through technology exchanges and joint standards across materials, components, packaging, cooling and systems.

At the symposium, participants presented the latest technology trends focused on thermal management for servers and racks, and for chips and packages. Topics included two-phase cooling and cold plates, immersion cooling, refrigerants for AI data centres, heat dissipation solutions for high-performance AI semiconductors, thermal interface materials, active cooling and thermal switching, packaging reliability, measurement of thermophysical properties of high-heat AI semiconductors, and strategies to promote standardisation.

KIST plans to use the launch of the council to strengthen development of fundamental technologies and industrial linkages in next-generation cooling technology, high-heat-dissipation materials and semiconductor packaging.