South Korea’s artificial intelligence (AI) industry lags far behind major countries such as the United States and China. Tortoise Intelligence, a data analysis institute based in the United Kingdom, recently came out with its “Global AI Index,” subjecting 62 countries around the globe to certain key criteria. The survey showed that Korea ranked sixth with 40.3 points while the U.S. topped the list with 100 points followed by China with 61.5 points. Singapore and the U.K. outranked Korea with 49.7 and 41.8 points, respectively.
Of the seven major categories, Korea got a relatively high score in terms of innovation, possessing the largest number of patents after the U.S. and China. Yet, it received poor scores in the categories of talent and investments, ranking 12th and 18th, respectively. Korea had only six AI-related listed firms, compared to 172 in the U.S. and 161 in China. Japan had 26 while Taiwan had nine. Regarding cumulative investments during 2013-2022, Korea registered only $5.5 billion, far behind the U.S.’ $248.9, China’s $95.1 billion and the U.K.’s $18.2 billion.
The growth prospect of the global generative AI market is very bright. Bloomberg forecasts the global AI market will expand to 1,600 trillion won ($1.18 trillion) by 2032. Goldman Sachs even foresees generative AI helping boost global GDP by more than 7 percent.
Rep. Yang Hyang-ja cited the need for full-fledged support for domestic IT enterprises that are mostly struggling to sharpen their industrial competitiveness. They include Naver and Kakao which launched AI companies such as HyperCLOVA X and KoGPT 2.0, respectively. “Regrettably, the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s AI-related R&D budget was curtailed by 43 percent (389.4 billion won). Many experts in academic and industrial sectors are expressing grave concerns,” Yang said during a National Assembly inspection of state affairs on Oct. 10.
Many experts agree that national competitiveness will increasingly hinge on the AI industry. Global Big Tech companies are desperate to take the lion’s share of the superb and gigantic AI development market. Furthermore, military AI has already emerged as a game changer in the defense industry, stoking anxiety over the possible far-flung impact on global security.
As seen in the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, the former has already been utilizing images collected via drones and satellites to be analyzed by AI to aid military tactics. AI is supposed to be used mainly for defensive purposes. But if it is exploited for offensive purposes, there should be efforts to make available the necessary technological power.
How to secure necessary talent has been an essential task facing each nation. Against this backdrop, an increasing number of Chinese companies have been eager to attract university graduates by offering the highest level of wages among all industries. In contrast, South Korea has seen many excellent students rushing to medical colleges.
It is high time for the Yoon administration to put more priority on boosting the AI industry. It needs to map out a grand plan toward that end encompassing tactics to boost industries, develop technology and nurture talent. “As the nation combined its efforts to promote the semiconductor industry 40 years ago, now the government should take the leading role as a control tower to muster national energy to raise the AI industry,” Yang said.
The U.K. has poured 1.6 trillion won while Japan provided more than 50 billion won in assistance to relevant companies to help their enterprises hone global competitiveness. The firms need more support and opportunities including wide-ranging deregulation, in particular. By designating generative AI as a national strategic item, the government should provide firms with various incentives in R&D and facility investments such as tax breaks, for instance.