[AI Hegemony War Korea's Winning Move] "AI War, A Weapon Unique to Korea Is Needed" in Unison

50 Companies Participating in the Survey

The curtain has risen on the war to dominate artificial intelligence (AI) supremacy. Amid the great powers entering the war armed with massive capital and technological prowess, South Korea's weapons appear modest. Voices are emerging that South Korea needs its own unique weapons to create a turning point in the AI supremacy war.

Asia Economy surveyed 50 companies on the front lines of the AI war to seek solutions. The survey targets were mainly selected from companies participating in the project "AI Revolution," which has been introducing companies with independent AI technology capabilities since March.

These include Samsung Electronics, LG, Hanmi Semiconductor, Kakao Brain, Samsung SDS, LG Uplus, LG CNS, SK C&C, Smilegate, Upstage, NCSoft, Wincube Marketing, Selvas AI, Naver, Nexon, Spic, Raon, Flunit, Netmarble, Vibe Company, Vuno, Saltlux, Liner, SKT, CNAI, Veloc, Rowan, Second Syndrome, Darak, KT, Artificial Society, Poza Labs, Huron, Secusen, AI Medic, Gaudio Lab, Omnius, Jiranjigyo Data, Fasoo.com, Flitto, MyRealTrip, Lytton Technologies, Lion Rocket, Mro, Bitnine, and others.

Kim Yuwon, CEO of Naver Cloud, is introducing 'HyperCloverX'.

Among them, Naver and Kakao are regarded as representative companies developing super-large AI models domestically. Super-large AI models are the core of the AI supremacy war. Naver will unveil its next-generation super-large AI "Hyper ClovaX" next month. Having introduced "Hyper Clova" two years ago, Naver pursues changes in daily life through the evolved Hyper ClovaX. Kakao plans to launch the super-large AI "KoGPT" within the year, with expectations for integration with the national messenger "KakaoTalk."

Samsung and LG are the key pillars leading domestic AI. Samsung Electronics, the number one in the memory industry, is advancing the AI era with next-generation memory semiconductors. They plan to open a new era of memory that meets AI demand through high-bandwidth memory suitable for large-scale data processing required for AI learning and computation. LG AI Research Institute's super-large AI "EXAONE" is at the center of LG's AI business. EXAONE stands for "EXpert AI for everyONE." EXAONE is active in various fields such as IT, finance, healthcare, manufacturing, and telecommunications without being limited to specific purposes.

Example image of HBM-PIM used with graphics processing units (GPU) for large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) support. (Photo by Samsung Electronics Semiconductor Newsroom)

SK Telecom (SKT), KT, and LG Uplus, the three major mobile carriers, are creating AI that can understand people. SKT unveiled the country's first super-large AI service in May last year and also introduced the AI service "A.Dot." KT is developing services for seniors with AI emotional care functions. LG Uplus launched the AI "IXI," which helps connect people. It assists with tasks such as sports match predictions, customer service, and store monitoring.

Additionally, startups embedding AI technology into various aspects of daily life participated in the survey. XL8, leading the way in breaking down language barriers through AI that translates spoken language, and "Liner," which developed an AI-based search platform surpassing ChatGPT, are included. "Lytton," noted for its AI that writes texts, is also among them. Lytton supports writing tailored to purposes such as copywriting, blog posting, and self-introductions, and surpassed 100,000 users within four months of launching its service.