President Lee: "AI as One of the Top 3 Nations is Not Just a Hopeful Slogan... It's a Survival Strategy That Will Determine Korea's Future"

[Financial News] President Lee Jaemyung stated on the 8th, "The vision of our government to become one of the top three nations in artificial intelligence (AI) is not just a hopeful slogan. It is a core survival strategy that will determine the future of our Republic of Korea."
President Lee made these remarks at the inauguration ceremony of the National AI Strategy Committee held at Seoul Square, saying, "Our Republic of Korea stands at a great historical inflection point, where we must decide whether to become a chaser exposed to the risk of obsolescence or a leader enjoying infinite opportunities."
President Lee emphasized, "The civilization-level great transformation triggered by AI goes beyond simple technological innovation and is completely changing our lives," adding, "Advanced technologies like AI, which determine national competitiveness and future prosperity, are national power, economic power, and also security capabilities."
Furthermore, President Lee noted, "If we boldly move forward and lead the future, AI will modernize the industrial structure and improve the quality of life for our people, leading the Republic of Korea into a new era of prosperity," while warning, "Conversely, if we hesitate and remain complacent, we will not be able to avoid the triple hardships of technological dependency, industrial decline, and the deepening of inequality and polarization."
President Lee stated, "If we do not leap forward as a future AI powerhouse contributing to the development of humanity and the global society, the dream and vision of true growth for the Republic of Korea, a strong national defense, and a prosperous cultural powerhouse will all become unattainable," explaining, "To realize the vision of AI as one of the top three nations, our government will establish and implement related strategies based on four principles."
In particular, President Lee pointed out, "We must implement AI for everyone that is easily accessible and usable, and inclusive AI centered on people," emphasizing, "The role of the state is more important than anything else to ensure that the changes brought by AI do not lead to the deepening of polarization and imbalance, especially for the socially disadvantaged and marginalized groups."
President Lee stated, "A public-private one-team strategy where the private sector leads and the government supports," adding, "In an era of global technological hegemony competition, it is impossible to promote and develop advanced technology industries without mobilizing national capabilities. The government must strategically support with solid investments to maximize the creativity, dynamism, and professional capabilities of the private sector."
He further emphasized, "We must reorganize the entire system of society to be AI-friendly. From the perspective of AI negative, laws, systems, and the entire ecosystem must be restructured to blossom the possibilities and potential of overtaking rather than just catching up with technology," stressing, "Innovation in national systems such as administration, healthcare, and education must accompany to dramatically improve the quality of life for the people."
President Lee conveyed, "We must create balanced AI development that allows the entire nation to develop together and share the fruits equally," adding, "We must create a structure where the promotion of AI-related specialized industries, infrastructure construction, and the nurturing of key talents are connected to regional development."
He continued, "Each task is truly difficult and challenging. However, our Republic of Korea has turned crises into opportunities at every critical juncture in history, creating changes that the world pays attention to," adding, "I am confident that if we gather wisdom and strength together, we can fully realize the vision of becoming one of the top three AI nations leading the world."

syj@fnnews.com Seo Youngjun Reporter