"What Korea Must Do: Three Key Words from Sam Altman"

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s First Visit to Korea
"Semiconductors, AI Ecosystem, International Norms" Key Topics
Many OpenAI Executives Accompany Him…Koreans Also Draw Attention

"We propose increasing semiconductor production capacity to activate AI, eliminating regulations on corporate activities to build an AI ecosystem, and playing a leading role in creating international norms."

This was the message left by Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who sparked the generative artificial intelligence (AI) boom with ChatGPT, during his first visit to Korea. After a busy 1-night, 2-day schedule, Altman delivered three key points: to leverage Korea's strengths in semiconductors and AI startup competitiveness while taking a leading voice in international AI regulations.

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, is having a conversation at the 'K-Startups meet OpenAI' event hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on the 9th at 63 Square, Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

CEO Altman visited Korea on the 9th. At 11 a.m., he officially started his schedule with a dialogue session with about 100 startup founders, invited by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, at the 63 Building in Yeouido, Seoul. In the afternoon, he attended a roundtable with 1,000 participants including AI developers, entrepreneurs, and university students, and held a private Q&A session for about an hour with around 40 small AI companies. Afterwards, he had a meeting with President Yoon Suk-yeol. He also met with Choi Sung-hwan, President of SK Networks Business Division, to discuss investment cooperation. On the 10th, he held the 'Worldcoin Meetup Seoul,' a blockchain community gathering, at Hashed Lounge in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Worldcoin is a blockchain foundation established by Altman and co-founder Alex Blania.

The most frequently mentioned topic during the hectic schedule was "semiconductors." When President Yoon asked, "Which area should Korea focus on?" Altman pointed to semiconductors. He emphasized, "In the AI era, due to the massive amount of data, demand for memory semiconductors will greatly increase," adding, "To meet OpenAI's demand, Korean semiconductors are necessary, and we earnestly want to cooperate with Korea." This was advice to focus on Korea's strength in the memory semiconductor sector.

Altman also highly evaluated the Korean AI ecosystem and hinted at investment possibilities. During his meeting with President Yoon, he said, "Korean AI startups have fully equipped competitiveness to perform on the international stage," giving high marks. At the roundtable with Minister Lee Young of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, he said, "We look forward to cooperating with Korean companies," and "We want to invest in Korean startups developing using our platform." To this end, he announced that the 'OpenAI Fund,' which invests in AI companies worldwide, will also be applied to Korean startups. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups added, "We are discussing holding an OpenAI developer workshop for Korean startups and will proceed with additional talks for joint development of AI semiconductors, including OpenAI-dedicated semiconductors."

However, he stressed that bold regulatory reforms are necessary to nurture the AI ecosystem. Regarding international AI norms, he said the focus should be on the future, addressing current risks without stifling innovation. Altman stated, "Establishing norms is important to reduce risks within society and guarantee individual benefits," and "I hope Korea will take a leading role."

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who sparked the generative artificial intelligence (AI) boom with ChatGPT, is speaking at the 'K-Startup Meet Open AI' held on the 9th at 63 Square in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

At the blockchain event, he mentioned changes in the labor market due to AI and raised the topic of universal basic income. Altman proposed, "If AI causes changes in the labor market, it will be difficult to adapt," adding, "In this regard, universal basic income could be one solution." As AI advances highly, humans may reduce traditional labor and focus more on creative work, but labor income could decrease. Therefore, universal basic income should be supported using virtual assets.

Meanwhile, attention was drawn to the Koreans accompanying Altman on this visit. Anna, wife of Greg Brockman, OpenAI co-founder and chairman, was born in Korea. The Brockman couple is known to have a strong interest in Korea. Brockman said, "I really like Korea," adding, "I have a black belt in Taekwondo and have been learning Korean since middle school." Joanne Jang, OpenAI product manager, is also of Korean descent. She has a strong interest in AI and applications, having worked at Dropbox and Google. She later joined OpenAI and leads the image generation AI product 'DALL·E.'

It is also notable that many of OpenAI's key executives visited Korea. Previously, Altman usually traveled alone or with a few executives. Brockman is one of OpenAI's core executives along with Altman and co-founder Ilya Sutskever. Brad Lightcap, OpenAI's Chief Operating Officer (COO), also accompanied them. He is in charge of managing OpenAI's startup fund investments.