[IT Cafe] "We Will Be the National AI Champion," but Challengers Fear Elimination

‘After Elimination’ Becomes a Key Topic in the AI Survival Race
Companies Worry: “What If We Don’t Make It to the End?”
Government Promises to Discuss Ways to Utilize All Achievements: “There Is No Success Without Failure”

"It would be great if the achievements of the teams that were eliminated from the 'independent artificial intelligence (AI) foundation model' development project could also be put to good use."

This single remark by Kakao Vice President Kim Sewoong, made at an on-site meeting hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT at the Naver Cloud 'Gak Sejong' data center in July, is still being discussed throughout the industry. The businesspeople and officials present did not take his comment lightly. Among the five teams that have survived so far, only two will ultimately reach the final finish line. There is a sense of tension-"Someday, it could be our turn"-and a shared awareness that the personnel and achievements of eliminated companies should not go to waste.

There has been much speculation about why Kakao did not make it into the final five elite teams. According to industry sources, Kakao participated without forming a broad consortium, essentially competing on its own, which put it at a disadvantage in the evaluation metrics. Additionally, there were concerns that using KakaoTalk message data for model training would pose significant privacy risks and that the business potential was unclear, leading Kakao to take a cautious approach from the start. Nevertheless, some expressed regret, saying, "Wasn't it eliminated too early?" Even before the final results were announced, Vice President Kim's comment-almost as if he anticipated not being selected-left a lingering impression on other companies as well.

The teams still in the project are continuing their research under considerable pressure. There are concerns that "if we are eliminated in the final round, all the investment made so far will be cut off." One official stated, "All participating companies have top-tier research talent, so if the project is halted midway, we need to find ways to utilize those resources." Another official commented, "It is difficult to compete with only large-scale models, so we are preparing to ensure that achievements in areas such as model optimization, agents, and semiconductor optimization can also have value." Outwardly, the teams pledge to build a "national AI," but internally, they are also strategizing for what comes after elimination.

In this process, ideas such as follow-up participation and sharing of achievements are being discussed continuously. This could involve integrating the personnel of eliminated companies into other teams or turning their research outcomes into shared assets. The opinion that "since everyone has invested valuable talent and resources, we should not let the achievements go to waste but utilize them together" is gaining traction. When such suggestions were made at last month's Gak Sejong on-site meeting, Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyunghoon immediately expressed his agreement.

Minister Bae stated, "Fifteen companies applied, and there is no success without failure. We need to create a society that accepts failure," promising, "We will proactively consider and discuss this." This is seen as a signal of intent to incorporate the assets of eliminated companies into the ecosystem by any means. The industry has responded positively, saying, "It is encouraging that the government is not simply focused on ranking and selection, but is also considering how to make use of the outcomes afterward."

This independent AI foundation model development project cannot be viewed simply as a "competition among five teams." Elimination does not mean the end; rather, the challenge for both the government and the industry is to design a system where it can lead to new opportunities. As one industry official put it, "Ultimately, what matters is not who survives until the end, but how the remaining achievements are shared across the entire Korean AI sector."