[2025 Audit] STIBC Audit Puts 'Academic Morality and R&D Governance' Under Scrutiny

Lee Kwanghyung, President of KAIST, Faces JMS Controversy
Kim Youngsik, NST Chairman, Expresses "Regret Over R&D Cuts"

At the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee (STIBC) audit held at the Korea Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) in Daejeon on the 24th, both the morality of leaders in the scientific and technological community and the credibility of the government's research and development (R&D) policies came under scrutiny.

The audit was attended by Lee Kwanghyung, President of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Kim Youngsik, Chairman of the National Research Council of Science & Technology (NST), as well as representatives from the four major science and technology institutes and government-funded research organizations.

On the 24th, at the Korea Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) in Daejeon, Lee Hae-min, a member of the Innovation Party for the Nation, is questioning during the National Assembly inspection by the Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Lee Haemin, a member of the National Assembly from the Party for National Innovation, criticized, "President Lee Kwanghyung attended JMS events more than twice while sex offender Jung Myungseok was serving his sentence, and even after his release, in 2019 while serving as vice president, he visited Geumsan, Chungnam to inquire about 'spiritual phenomena' and 'methods for measuring dark matter.' As a representative of a national institution, he has lost his morality and credibility. He is currently a candidate for president and should step down."

Kim Dohyeong, an anti-JMS activist and professor, also appeared as a witness and said, "How can members of a school, where some suffer as families of victims, accept the fact that the president exchanged gifts with the perpetrator?" He urged the KAIST board of directors to make a responsible decision.

In response, President Lee explained, "At the time, during an external lecture, I said, 'Measuring dark matter would be worthy of a Nobel Prize,' and someone offered to introduce me to a person deeply versed in spiritual phenomena. That person turned out to be Jung Myungseok. I believe it was an attempt to recruit me." He added, "I was asked to cooperate, but I refused, and that was the end of the meeting. In hindsight, it was a calculated attempt to draw me in."

Lee Hoonki, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized the 'AI-based All-Area Security Technology Development Project' promoted by former Presidential Security Service Chief Kim Yonghyun, calling it "the Korean version of Big Brother." He pointed out, "This was a 24 billion won project, with 12 billion won each provided by the Presidential Security Service and the Ministry of Science and ICT. However, a security company with no research experience established a research institute just two weeks before the announcement and won the bid. There are indications that a former Korea Research Foundation official who designed the competition collaborated with a related company."

Assemblyman Lee Haemin also emphasized, "The European Union imposes strict restrictions on crowd surveillance and the use of biometric information. In Korea as well, ethical guidelines for large-scale crowd surveillance AI technology are urgently needed."

The issue of government R&D budget cuts was also raised again. Kim Youngsik, Chairman of NST, stated, "I tried to prevent the cuts in my own way, but the outcome was otherwise. As a scientist and technologist, I deeply regret this." He explained, "I believe there were problems in the budget allocation process. The intention was to improve efficiency, not to justify the cuts."

Chairman Kim served as the STIBC secretary for the People Power Party during the 2023 budget cuts and was appointed NST Chairman in November last year. The Ministry of Science and ICT and NST are currently working on improving the research structure of government-funded institutes and establishing AI research centers following the abolition of the Project-Based System (PBS). Chairman Kim emphasized, "True technological sovereignty is achieved when researchers are respected and their achievements translate into improvements in people's lives."