According to industry sources, American billionaire Bill Gates held a series of meetings with multiple Korean business executives during his visit to Korea this week, discussing various topics ranging from corporate relations to corporate social responsibility initiatives.

Samsung Electronics announced on Friday that Samsung Chairman Lee Jae-yong met with Gates earlier that day at the company's building in Seoul's Gangnam district, exchanging views on cooperation in corporate social responsibility areas, though no further details were provided.

The Korean tech giant began collaborating with the Gates Foundation in 2011 through the "Reinvent the Toilet" project, which focuses on building sanitary toilets in developing countries.

Korean shipbuilding giant HD Hyundai stated that the company's Executive Vice Chairman Jung Ki-sun held talks with Gates regarding cooperation on Small Modular Reactor (SMR) projects developed by the American billionaire's startup company TerraPower.

Jung Ki-sun met with Gates, founder and chairman of TerraPower, on Friday in Seoul to discuss expanding supply and commercialization plans for the company's Natrium reactor.

Under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in the United States in March, HD Hyundai agreed to provide reactor vessels for TerraPower's first Natrium reactor.

TerraPower President and CEO Chris Levesque stated: "HD Hyundai is not only a globally recognized shipyard but also a key supply chain partner with deep manufacturing expertise that will play an important role in the global nuclear industry."

He expressed hope that this collaboration would accelerate the commercialization of Natrium reactors and create new opportunities in the global market.

Meanwhile, HD Hyundai is also intensifying development of nuclear-powered vessels, including collaboration with TerraPower on molten salt reactor (MSR) technology for shipbuilding applications.

Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, visited Korea partly to explore cooperation with local pharmaceutical companies on vaccine supply projects for low-income countries.

On Thursday, he also met with Korean President Lee Jae-myung, exchanging views on advanced industries such as artificial intelligence (AI) and modular reactors.

Additionally, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won met with Gates on Thursday, discussing cooperation plans across various fields from modular reactors to vaccines and energy.

"I believe Korea and SK can play a crucial role in the commercialization of TerraPower's SMR," Chey Tae-won said during the meeting. "We should work together to improve the market viability of small reactors based on safety, efficiency, and environmental friendliness."

SK Group's holding company SK Inc. and SK Innovation jointly invested $250 million in 2022, becoming TerraPower's second-largest shareholder.

In response, Gates emphasized the Korean government's role in establishing regulatory systems and supply chains to accelerate the development of next-generation small reactors.