"Global AI competition is spreading beyond technology development into an all-out national contest that decides industry, security and growth," said Ha Jung-woo, standing vice chair of the Presidential Council on National AI Strategy Committee, at a keynote at Seoul Square on Tuesday.
Korea has the potential to build a full-stack AI ecosystem on its technology, infrastructure and manufacturing strengths, he told around 150 officials.
"If the past year was the time to lay the groundwork, now is the time to build a bigger leap on that base," Ha said, adding that the committee's second term would focus on clearing obstacles in the field.
Ha took the post on Aug. 31, three months after losing a National Assembly by-election in Busan's Buk-gu A district to independent Han Dong-hoon by 1.7 percentage points.
He had quit in April as President Lee Jae Myung's first senior secretary for AI to run, and Lee returned him to a seat left empty since May.
The 2027 budget bill sent to the National Assembly last week earmarks 21.3 trillion won ($15.8 billion) for AI and three mega-projects spanning semiconductors, physical AI and data centers, up 97.2 percent from this year's 10.8 trillion won.
The AI Basic Act, Asia's first comprehensive AI law, took effect on Jan. 22, and the committee in February approved a national action plan of 99 tasks. The Science Ministry has since narrowed its sovereign model contest to LG AI Research, SK Telecom and Upstage.
The government broke ground on August on a 2.41 trillion won national AI computing center in Haenam, which is to secure 15,000 GPUs by 2028.
The 260,000-chip national build-out announced at last October's APEC summit runs on Nvidia hardware.
AJP Takeaways
- South Korea's Presidential Council on National AI Strategy Committee marked its first anniversary on Sept. 8, 2026, with standing Vice Chair Ha Jung-woo pledging to move the presidential body from strategy-setting to execution.
- The 2027 budget bill submitted to the National Assembly on Sept. 3, 2026, allocates 21.3 trillion won to AI and three mega-projects covering semiconductors, physical AI and AI data centers, up 97.2 percent from 10.8 trillion won in 2026.
- Ha Jung-woo took the post on Aug. 31, 2026, after losing the June 3, 2026, National Assembly by-election in Busan's Buk-gu A district to independent Han Dong-hoon by 1.7 percentage points, having resigned as President Lee Jae Myung's senior secretary for AI future planning in April 2026.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.
