"Nvidia would like to treat the police officers to a meal."

Madison Huang, Nvidia's Senior Director of Product Marketing for Omniverse and Robotics and the eldest daughter of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, sent an email of appreciation to the Mapo Police Station in Seoul. She had visited the Hongdae area on the 5th to accompany her father during his meetings with key South Korean business leaders.

In her email, Madison Huang wrote, "Hello. I wanted to express my gratitude for how the Seoul police managed our visit," adding, "Despite the unexpected crowds, the officers provided us with professional assistance."

She continued, "Thank you so much for your collaboration and help (with our security team). CEO Huang is sincerely grateful for the way the police keep the Korean public safe."


On the 5th, the Mapo Police Station identified that CEO Huang, who arrived at Gimpo Airport via private jet, had a scheduled visit to a PC cafe in Hongdae to meet with Faker. The police immediately deployed personnel to manage the crowds at the scene.

As CEO Huang is not a government official, there is no mandated level of police protection under the National Police Agency's security regulations.

However, the Mapo Police Station determined that there was a high risk of crowd-related accidents given that it was a Friday in Hongdae, a popular area for celebrities, and deployed officers without delay.

After successfully managing the PC cafe visit without incident, the police soon learned that CEO Huang was heading to a local restaurant for a meal of samgyeopsal (pork belly) and soju.

On a Friday night in Hongdae, an area already packed with people, news of the CEO's presence prompted the Mapo Police to deploy one riot police unit (60 officers) and about 40 local station staff to manage the crowds.

Drawing on advice from the Gangnam Police Station, which had experience managing crowds during a meeting between CEO Huang and Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong at a chicken restaurant in Samseong-dong last October, the officers brought accordion-style barricades.

The police installed these barricades between the sidewalk and the road, guiding the flow of pedestrians to prevent the crowd from surging in one direction.

While managing the dinner without incident, the police received further news that they were not particularly pleased to hear: CEO Huang wanted to go to a karaoke bar for a second round.

Furthermore, the plan was to walk through the narrow alleys to get there.

The police, judging that walking through the streets of Hongdae would draw massive crowds and risk an accident, persuaded the CEO's side by explaining the risks, citing the Itaewon tragedy as a reference.

They emphasized that if a crowd surged in a narrow alley, it could lead to a major accident, such as overturning street stalls or food carts.

CEO Huang's team accepted the police's advice and canceled the karaoke plans.

Instead, they expressed a desire to have chimaek (chicken and beer). They suggested going to a nearby chicken restaurant.


The chicken restaurant chosen by CEO Huang's team was a 200-meter walk from the barbecue restaurant through the main street of Hongdae.

Although it was only a three-minute walk, the risk of an accident due to the heavy crowd was significant.

However, CEO Huang's team reportedly did not want uniformed police officers surrounding him.

In response, the police advised them to "walk along the wall rather than through the middle of the street to minimize contact with citizens."

To prepare for any emergencies, they kept the riot police unit within 5 meters of the CEO as they moved.

As expected, when CEO Huang waved to citizens and stepped onto the street, hundreds of people swarmed toward him. The Mapo Police immediately deployed the riot unit to control the crowd.

At the same time, they quickly moved the barricades to the chicken restaurant to establish a crowd control line.

After the Hongdae schedule concluded, an Nvidia representative told the field commander, "There were many unexpected situations today, and we are very grateful," and offered to treat the officers to a meal.

However, the field commander declined, stating, "As public servants, it is difficult for us to accept a meal." When the Nvidia representative asked for an email address, the commander provided a business card.

The field commander recently stated, "I learned of the email after an Nvidia employee called to tell me, 'We sent a thank-you note, please check it.'" He added, "In my reply, I wrote, 'I am glad that CEO Huang and his party finished their visit to Korea safely. The Seoul police are always confident in maintaining safety, so you are welcome to visit Seoul anytime.'"

He added, "As it was a Friday in Hongdae, I focused on ensuring the safety of the public and preventing accidents while guaranteeing the citizens' freedom of movement. It was simply the police doing their duty to protect public safety, and as public officials, we could not accept the offer of a meal."

(Photo: Yonhap News)