LG Electronics x NVIDIA: AI Cooling Deal, Virginia Chiller Plant & Jobs

Quick answer: On September 28, 2026, LG Electronics joined NVIDIA’s partner network as a preferred partner for power and cooling in AI data centers. A week later came news that LG is building its first U.S. chiller factory in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, with more than 150 new jobs and production planned for the first half of 2027. If you work in HVAC, manufacturing, quality or field service, this is a Korean employer worth watching.

What LG and NVIDIA announced

AI chips run hot. Large GPU clusters need liquid cooling that moves coolant straight to the chips, and that is where LG wants to play. According to LG’s newsroom, the company joined the NVIDIA Partner Network as a Power and Cooling Solution Preferred Partner.

LG’s largest coolant distribution unit (CDU), a 2.6 MW model, qualified as an NVIDIA DSX Ready CDU.
Its 600 kW and 1 MW CDU models also completed NVIDIA qualification.
LG plans to seek qualification for a 4.0 MW CDU by the end of 2026.
The units use direct-to-chip liquid cooling and can work alongside existing air cooling.

LG’s first U.S. chiller plant: Virginia

Location	Isle of Wight County, Virginia (Hampton Roads area)
Size	350,000 sq ft plant on a 43-acre site
Product	Air-cooled chillers for AI data centers
Investment	About KRW 150 billion (around $112 million), shared with chiller lines in Pyeongtaek and Changwon, Korea
Jobs	More than 150 new jobs, according to Virginia’s governor
Timeline	Production planned for the first half of 2027

What this could mean for jobs

LG has not published a full list of roles for the Virginia site yet. From what I see when Korean manufacturers open a new U.S. plant, hiring usually comes in this order:

Launch team: plant manager, HR, EHS (safety), facilities and project engineers, often with Korean expats supporting from HQ.
Production ramp-up: production supervisors, assemblers, welders, maintenance and controls technicians, quality inspectors.
Customer side: HVAC application engineers, field service technicians for chillers and CDUs, and sales for data center clients.

If you have HVAC, refrigeration, chiller service or data center facilities experience, this is a good time to update your resume with the exact equipment you have worked on, and to set job alerts for the Hampton Roads area. Being able to work with a Korean HQ team is a plus. Here is what Korean companies ask in interviews.

Why this matters beyond LG

Every new AI data center needs power and cooling, and Korean companies are moving fast into that supply chain. That means more U.S. jobs that combine traditional skills, like HVAC and manufacturing, with the AI boom. It is a good example of a career AI is creating rather than replacing. For where other Korean groups are hiring, see my guide to where Samsung, LG, Hyundai and SK hire in the U.S.

Got an offer from a new plant? Run it through the offer comparison calculator and the take-home pay calculator before you sign.

FAQ

Where is LG’s new chiller factory?

In Isle of Wight County, Virginia, in the Hampton Roads region. It is LG Electronics’ first chiller plant in the U.S.

When will the Virginia plant start hiring?

Production is planned for the first half of 2027, so leadership and engineering hiring usually starts months earlier, followed by production roles closer to launch. Watch LG’s careers site and Virginia job boards.

What is a CDU?

A coolant distribution unit moves liquid coolant to the chips in AI servers and carries heat away. It is a key part of liquid cooling in high-density data centers.

Sources: LG Newsroom (Sept 28, 2026), Data Centre Magazine (Oct 6, 2026).

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jacob Kim

Bilingual (English/Korean) recruiter based in New Jersey. I place engineers, technicians and office staff with Korean-affiliated companies and their suppliers across the U.S., and I write GRYNDHAUS from the questions candidates actually ask me during interviews, offers and their first months on the job.

OSHA 30 · B.B.A., Baruch College (CUNY)

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