NIA Director Hwang Jong-seong: "Allocating 25% of Budget to AI... Becoming a Leading AI Power"

The National Information Society Agency (NIA) of Korea has unveiled the 'NIA 4.0' vision to advance as a specialized institution for artificial intelligence (AI) utilization.

On the 24th, Hwang Jong-seong, President of NIA, held a press conference in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, stating, "Our top priority is AI response," and added, "We will play a major role in making Korea the strongest nation in AI utilization."

To this end, President Hwang announced that NIA will focus on three strategies: ▲ establishing AI-related regulations and policies ▲ building utilization infrastructure suitable for the AI era ▲ creating initial demand for AI services.

Specifically, this year, 25% of the total budget of 686.9 billion KRW will be allocated solely to AI-related projects, and by 2027, the entire operation will be reorganized around AI, raising the proportion of AI project budgets to over 50%.

This year, 112.4 billion KRW will be invested in building national AI infrastructure, 52.7 billion KRW in promoting AI utilization including support for developing super-large AI-based services, and 5.37 billion KRW in supporting national AI policies.

Regarding the recent report by Stanford University in the U.S., which seemingly undermined Korea's AI competitiveness with inaccurate information, NIA will also work to prevent similar incidents from recurring. Stanford's Human-Centered AI Institute recently pointed out in a report that no Korean companies have developed foundation models; however, the Ministry of Science and ICT rebutted this by listing numerous domestic company examples.

Accordingly, NIA announced that one of its key initiatives this year is to pursue cooperation with global AI index research organizations such as Tortoise and Oxford. NIA plans to provide accurate information to these private research institutions to ensure "proper evaluation."

President Hwang stated, "Korea's AI competitiveness is truly outstanding when viewed comprehensively. We possess a third alternative model independent of advanced countries, which is highly regarded internationally," and revealed plans to engage in international cooperation, including supporting Korean-style AI capabilities in developing countries.

In this context, he also expressed the urgent need for the National Assembly to pass the AI Basic Act. President Hwang suggested, "Since we are in the AI era, dozens or hundreds of related laws will emerge in the future. We should first establish the Basic Act and then systematically organize the necessary laws one by one."