South Korea’s AI drive gains momentum as President Lee Jae Myung appoints Bae Kyung-hoon as the new science minister. Moreover, Bae currently serves as chief of LG AI Research and brings deep expertise to the role. This appointment, furthermore, marks another key step in South Korea’s bid to become a global AI powerhouse. It also follows the recent naming of Ha Jung-woo as senior secretary of AI and future planning. Clearly, the government signals its all-in commitment to advancing AI leadership.
Bae’s appointment, in addition, comes alongside an ambitious plan to invest 100 trillion won in AI development. Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik, in fact, stressed the goal of reaching the world’s top three in AI. The administration, therefore, is pulling talent from major tech firms like LG and Naver. Bae’s experience, consequently, will help align public and private efforts for faster progress. Thus, South Korea’s AI drive gains momentum with this coordinated approach between sectors.
Bae has worked across top firms, including Samsung, SK Telecom, and LG. At LG AI Research, notably, he led the creation of the Exaone hyperscale language model. His leadership, as a result, brought the model from concept to open-source release by 2024. Earlier this year, furthermore, his team launched Korea’s first inference AI model, Exaone Deep. Such milestones clearly reflect how South Korea’s AI drive gains momentum through homegrown innovations.
Industry experts, meanwhile, see urgency in Korea’s AI race. Professor Choi Byung-ho of Korea University, for example, stressed the need for fast, expert-driven leadership. He praised Bae as one of the few who can handle frontier models end-to-end. The nation, undoubtedly, faces a fast-evolving AI landscape where quick decisions are crucial. For this reason, South Korea’s AI drive gains momentum with Bae’s seasoned leadership.
Once confirmed by parliament, Bae will oversee science and ICT policy. He and Ha, in tandem, will craft national AI strategies and drive interagency coordination. Both, importantly, advocate building sovereign AI on domestic infrastructure, data, and expertise. Experts also highlight the pressing need for expanded AI infrastructure in Korea. As global models evolve rapidly, Korea must scale its infrastructure to compete on the world stage.
