Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon stated that "what South Korea needs now is not 'speed adjustment' but 'speed responsibility' in AI (artificial intelligence)," expressing his intention to accelerate the acquisition of future strategic technologies, including frontier AI. The government will promote R&D (research and development) innovation, intellectual property (IP), and AI-based "K-Moonshot" at a whole-of-government level, along with seven major SEED projects.
Deputy Prime Minister Bae presided over the 13th Science Gi Sul-gwan-gye (Minister) Conference at the Government Seoul Complex on the 30th, stating that "as various opinions have emerged recently that the pace of AI development should be moderated, international cooperation discussions to address the risks of advanced AI are active," and said as much.
He emphasized, "Going forward, the gap between countries that possess frontier AI capabilities and those that do not will determine not only a simple technological disparity but also industry, economy, and even the future competitiveness of the nation," adding, "Creating an AI nation that can move faster while remaining safer is the path South Korea must take." The plan involves actively promoting AI R&D and its application in industry and daily life, while strengthening safety measures against deepfakes, cyber threats, and personal information infringement.
Deputy Prime Minister Bae explained the policy following the launch of the Deputy Prime Minister system for science and technology and AI as "an effort to concentrate the nation's overall capabilities to enhance competitiveness in core areas and secure future strategic assets." He further stated, "Recently, the government has been actively implementing policies and investments to strengthen AI competitiveness, led by the 'Three Major Mega-Projects' and the 'Seven Major SEED Projects,' including the development of an independent AI model and the supply of advanced GPUs."
The government discussed five agenda items on this day, including the promotion plan for the seven major SEED projects. It will invest 4 trillion won in SMR (small modular reactors), nuclear fusion, renewable energy, quantum, space aviation, advanced bio, and advanced supply chains next year, and allocate over 200 trillion won to national R&D from 2026 to 2030. It will integrate IP strategy throughout the entire national R&D process to strengthen the acquisition of overseas and standard patents as well as commercialization.
The "K-Moonshot," which uses AI to solve scientific and technological challenges, will also be promoted. The government will secure dedicated resources for K-Moonshot on Supercomputer No. 6, which has a scale of approximately 8,000 GPUs (graphics processing units), and embark on developing mission-specific specialized AI agents and building an AI utilization system for data from research institutes.
Deputy Prime Minister Bae stated, "Preparing for the future and producing results that citizens can feel are not possible through the efforts of a single ministry alone," adding, "We will enhance the executability of policies through inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration on major issues."
in TECH
