[AI Hegemony War Korea's Winning Move] Korea's AI Competitiveness 'C Grade'... Ecosystem Building at Early Stage

Emergence of Core AI Technologies Since ChatGPT
Strong Technical Skills but Early Stage of Korea's Ecosystem Development
Lack of Talent and Minimal National Investment and Policy Support

Cognitive scientist John McCarthy sent a letter to the Rockefeller Foundation in 1955 proposing that "10 scientists gather at Dartmouth College to research artificial intelligence (AI). The goal is to solve problems that only humans can handle and to create machines that can develop themselves." The term AI first appeared in this letter, known as the 'Dartmouth Proposal.' Sixty-seven years later, in 2022, John McCarthy's aspiration became a reality through OpenAI's generative AI chatbot, ChatGPT. ChatGPT is a generative AI that performs conversations, coding, and more through large-scale language learning. Demonstrating conversational skills similar to humans, ChatGPT is regarded as a 'game changer' in the AI industry. The emergence of ChatGPT turned Nvidia, a producer of graphics processing units (GPUs), into a company with a market capitalization of $1 trillion. The stock price surge of American software company Oracle propelled its founder, Larry Ellison, past Bill Gates to become the world's fourth richest person. The world is currently engaged in a technological hegemony war over AI. In the AI technology market led by the United States and China, South Korea is still in its infancy. However, it is considered a country with great potential due to its high level of technological capability. This article diagnoses South Korea's AI industry and explores the direction it should take.

We are truly in a golden age of technology. Since the advent of ChatGPT, AI has emerged as a core technology shaking human civilization and industry. Bill Gates described OpenAI's AI chatbot ChatGPT as "the greatest innovation technology since 1980." The direction of the entire industry is shifting around AI, and companies differentiate themselves based on how well they utilize it. So, what score would South Korea's AI competitiveness receive?

Among 10 companies possessing AI technology, 6 rated South Korea's 'AI competitiveness' as a 'C grade (70 points).' While the technological capability can stand shoulder to shoulder with leading global companies, the reason is that South Korea's independent ecosystem is still in its early stages. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also assessed South Korea as "a country with the qualities to become a leader in the AI ecosystem."

Small Investment Scale and Lack of Talent Development

To lead the global AI market and enhance national competitiveness, many changes are needed. First, there is a severe shortage of talent. Investment and policy support at the national level are also minimal. Asia Economy conducted a survey on 50 AI-specialized companies under the theme of 'Diagnosing South Korea's Industry.' The survey results showed that 63% rated South Korea's AI technological competitiveness between 70 and 80 points, the highest proportion. This was followed by 50-60 points (14%) and 30-40 points (12%). Areas where South Korea lags in the global AI market include investment, policy, and human resources.

South Korea's total AI investment scale is far behind major countries such as the United States and China. According to the 'AI Index Report 2023' recently published by Stanford University, South Korean private companies invested $3.1 billion (3.9 trillion won) last year, ranking 6th. The United States led with $47.4 billion (60.6 trillion won), followed by China ($13.4 billion, 17.1 trillion won), the United Kingdom ($4.4 billion, 5.6 trillion won), Israel and India ($3.2 billion, 4 trillion won) in order.

Open innovation cases like Microsoft (MS) and OpenAI in the United States are hard to find domestically. MS incorporated OpenAI's GPT into its products instead of relying solely on its internal AI development team's research outcomes. MS invested $11 billion (14.3 trillion won) in OpenAI. Google also invested $400 million (500 billion won) in AI company Anthropic.

Biased investment is also a problem. A representative from Company A said, "To create a world-class AI ecosystem, attention should be focused on companies that actually deliver technology to people," adding, "The domestic AI ecosystem still lacks the ability to properly select companies, leading to a tendency to concentrate resources on companies specialized only in promotion."

The talent pool is also insufficient. The U.S. federal government invested about 1 trillion won in establishing an AI graduate school at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). China plans to train 5 million AI experts over five years. Investment and support are needed to back AI research and discover and attract promising talent. Professor Kim Jeong-ho of KAIST pointed out, "To barely maintain the semiconductor and AI fields, about 10,000 master's and doctoral students need to be trained annually, with 1,000 students each in semiconductor and AI fields, but government budgets are too small." There were also opinions that universities and research institutes should expand AI-related curricula and provide specialized education programs in the AI field to advance AI technology.

There are also calls for the government to actively support policies. For the development of the domestic AI ecosystem, close cooperation among industry, academia, and government is essential. A representative from Company B said, "It is important to develop and apply AI solutions to real problems through collaboration between industry and academia," adding, "The government should provide appropriate policies and support to drive the growth of the AI industry." A representative from Company C said, "Massive AI is still an incomplete technology with many errors, but the social atmosphere is not very tolerant of mistakes, and regulatory-focused movements in the political sphere are also challenging," emphasizing, "Systematic policies are needed to nurture global IT companies."

Translators Decline, AI Engineers Increase

How will our daily lives change with AI technological innovation? AI composes songs and draws pictures. It is smart enough to pass the bar exam. The development and spread of AI can change people's work environments and jobs. In a survey on 'jobs created by AI,' engineers (32%), consultants (24%), and ethics policy experts (19%) were cited. Jobs likely to disappear due to AI included translators (41%), administrative clerks (25%), and customer service representatives (16%) as top ranks.

Some companies actually use ChatGPT as an 'intern.' Lee Hwal-seok, CTO of Upstage, said, "Within the company, we call ChatGPT an 'intern,'" adding, "We think of it as meeting the expectations typically placed on interns." He also said, "In five years, it could reach the level of a third-year employee." Regarding the talents needed in the AI era, many companies chose those with AI utilization skills (30%) and creativity (29%) over expertise.

The survey targeted companies participating in the 'AI Revolution' project, which has been introducing companies with independent AI technology since March. The companies include Samsung Electronics, LG, Hanmi Semiconductor, Kakao Brain, Samsung SDS, LG Uplus, LG CNS, SK C&C, Smilegate, Upstage, NCSoft, WinQube Marketing, Selvas AI, Naver, Nexon, Speak, Raon, Plunit, Netmarble, Vibe Company, Vuno, Saltlux, Liner, SKT, CNAI, Velock, Rowan, Second Syndrome, Darak, KT, Artificial Society, Poja Labs, Huron, SecuSen, AI Medic, Gaudio Lab, OmniUs, Jiranjigyo Data, FASOO, Flitto, MyRealTrip, Lytton Technologies, Lion Rocket, Emro, and Bitnine.