Ahn Cheol-soo: "Only Our Country's Science and Technology Can Save Us... The Problem Is We Are Very Behind"

"In the 4th Industrial Revolution Era, '100,000 Talents' Must Be Trained"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Former Bareunmirae Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo evaluated South Korea's science and technology policy on the 23rd, saying, "Science and technology are the only way for our country to survive," but "the problem is that we are falling far behind."

On the morning of the same day, former lawmaker Ahn visited the AI Graduate School at KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) in Daejeon with Shin Yong-hyun, a Bareunmirae Party lawmaker, and met with Graduate School Dean Jeong Song and others.

He said, "The future discourse is simple," emphasizing, "Everyone, including the entire nation and political circles, must take an interest in the question of what we will live on in the future."

He added, "The most important thing is to break away from nationalism. It is a very outdated way of thinking for the government to take the lead in deciding the direction," and continued, "Now, the government should change from pulling the cart from the front to pushing it from behind. Only then will autonomy and creativity arise on the ground, leading to the development of science and technology."

Former lawmaker Ahn stated, "A Chinese company called Baidu announced a plan to train about 100,000 AI engineers over three years, but in South Korea, Seoul National University trains 60 people, and nationwide, only about 450 experts are trained annually," adding, "From now on, we must actively invest to nurture 100,000 talents for the Fourth Industrial Revolution era."

Right after the meeting, former lawmaker Ahn told reporters about his future political plans, "Today marks the fourth day since I returned to the country. I am starting by explaining what I intend to do," and said, "I will meet and discuss with people who can work together in earnest and gradually prepare things one by one."

He also said, "I thought it was my duty to talk about the direction South Korea should take," and added, "I will work hard to convey that sentiment by meeting many people during this general election."