WNAM REPORT: South Korean companies have pledged to invest a combined 65 trillion won (US$48.9 billion) in artificial intelligence (AI) development by 2027 to compete with global leaders, the presidential office said Thursday, as per reports.
The investment commitment was made during the inaugural meeting of the presidential committee on AI, which was launched to create AI strategy and coordinate AI research and development efforts, according to Park Sang-wook, presidential secretary for science and technology.
During the meeting, Yoon called for collaborative efforts by the government and private sector to achieve the goal for South Korea to become one of the top three AI leaders globally by 2027.
“It is a time when AI determines national capabilities and economic growth, becoming a key factor in the economy and security,” Yoon said. “The world’s major nations are staking everything on securing AI technology and leadership to win the digital supremacy competition.”
South Korea ranked sixth in Tortoise Media’s Global AI Index for 2024 among 83 countries, which evaluated 122 indicators, including research and development, investment, infrastructure, talent and strategy. The United States ranked first, followed by China.
To strengthen AI infrastructure, the government plans to build a national AI computing center worth 2 trillion won through joint investment with the private sector and expand the capacity of graphic processing units (GPU), which plays an important role in data centers.
“We will establish a national AI computing center through private-government investment and to drive the AI transformation across industries and society, encouraging further private sector investment in AI,” he said.
Yoon committed bold reforms in intellectual property regulations and private protections to ensure they safeguard core values without becoming obstacles to innovation, and vowed to establish strategies on R&D, infrastructure and legal frameworks.
The government also plans to establish an AI Safety Institute in November to deal with AI-related crimes, such as deepfakes and cyber threats, and enact an AI act by the end of the year, Park said.
In April, the government launched the AI-Semiconductor Initiative, which included plans to invest 9.4 trillion won (US$6.9 billion) in AI and AI chips by 2027 and create a 1.4 trillion-won fund to help the growth of AI chip companies.
South Korea and the United States have also formed an AI working group and launched a global AI frontier lab for joint research and development between the two countries.
