[Reporter’s Notebook] Detailed but... 'AI Talent Strategy' Falls Short

This year, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced a new government economic growth strategy that listed detailed items and focused on the global trend of "AI transformation." Under the belief that "AI determines national competitiveness," the overall vision was clear. However, it was disappointing that the plan lacked specific funding measures on how to achieve these goals.

Above all, the fundamental premise that "talent is the key to AI competitiveness" was not given sufficient attention, which was a major shortcoming. While the government demonstrated its commitment through measures such as expanding international joint research, providing incentives for AI professors at national universities, and supporting overseas training for outstanding young talent, it ultimately failed to present adequate solutions for redirecting top talent-currently concentrated in medical and law schools-toward the AI field.

At universities, there is a lack of research infrastructure and long-term support, while in the corporate sector, relatively low compensation and a focus on short-term results are holding back progress. Unless the structure that funnels social and economic incentives toward medical schools-where stable income and status are guaranteed-fundamentally changes, initiatives such as the "project to attract 2,000 overseas talents" will remain empty promises.

There was also a lack of convincing strategies to reduce dependence on foreign countries for the basic infrastructure that underpins AI development. AI requires not only independent technological capabilities but also essential elements for development such as data and computing resources. The government proposed measures such as securing more than 50,000 GPUs (graphics processing units) and supporting the expansion of data centers. However, it fell short in presenting concrete strategies for reducing reliance on the cloud services of a few overseas big tech companies like Amazon and Microsoft, as well as for securing long-term and sustainable access to AI resources.

Of course, it may have been difficult for the government to include all the detailed strategies and funding measures. With every ministry competing to emphasize the AI agenda, the various initiatives may have become fragmented and internal consensus may have been hard to achieve. There were likely challenges stemming from competition among different internal stakeholders making announcements.

Recently, a documentary titled "China Obsessed with Engineering, Korea Obsessed with Medicine" attracted significant attention. The documentary starkly contrasted the social incentives in the two countries. While Korea's talent and resources are concentrated in medical schools, China is channeling all kinds of resources into AI, which is the core of future competitiveness. For China's engineering talent, education, research, and compensation structures are well established, enabling them to focus on producing better results every day.

For an AI strategy to succeed, it is essential to build a structure that ensures stable access to data and computing power, and to reform the system so that top talent chooses engineering over medicine. The government must present detailed strategies for nurturing talent and securing key resources. Now is the time to demonstrate a strong resolve to restructure the social system so that engineers, not doctors, become the nation's core assets.