South Korea unveils plan to build own ChatGPT, Gemini competitor SEOUL, June 20 (AJP) - South Korea has unveiled an ambitious national initiative to develop its own artificial intelligence foundation model, aiming to reduce reliance on U.S. tech giants and establish a competitive foothold in the fast-evolving global AI race. The Ministry of Science and ICT said Friday it will accept applications from domestic AI consortiums through July 21 to participate in the project, which seeks to build a “Korean GPT” — a large language model to rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. “We expect this to be the starting point for ‘AI for All,’ as South Korea’s top AI elite teams take on the challenge of developing a globally competitive, independent AI foundation model,” said Song Sang-hoon, deputy minister for ICT policy, in a statement. “This will help the nation leap forward as an AI powerhouse.” The initiative, part of a broader policy roadmap presented Wednesday to the National Policy Planning Committee, aligns with President Lee Jae-myung’s campaign pledge to establish a domestically developed AI model designed for universal access and tailored to Korean linguistic and cultural needs. Up to five consortiums will be selected in the first phase, receiving government-provided resources including graphics processing units (GPUs), curated datasets and infrastructure support. The selected teams will be tasked with building both large language models and multimodal AI systems. The government has set an ambitious benchmark: models must perform at least 95 percent as well as leading global counterparts released within the prior six months. An initial evaluation will take place in December and will include a competitive showcase judged by both the public and AI experts. 2025-06-20 16:03:32

South Korea extends bidding deadline for controversial offshore gas project SEOUL, June 20 (AJP) - South Korea has extended the bidding deadline for international energy companies to join its contentious East Sea offshore gas development project, as foreign firms seek assurances about the new administration’s stance on an initiative spearheaded by the previous government. The state-run Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) has delayed the original June 20 deadline by several weeks, industry officials said, following requests from interested bidders for more time. The extension is expected to be formally announced through Onbid, the public auction platform managed by the Korea Asset Management Corporation. The delay comes as international oil majors weigh the commitment of President Lee Jae-myung’s administration to the project, which has drawn sharp political scrutiny. While more than 10 overseas companies have reportedly reviewed KNOC’s exploration data since bidding opened on March 20, industry experts say the future of the project remains clouded by political transition. President Lee, who took office on June 4, was a vocal critic of the gas field initiative during his campaign, labeling it a “scam” and questioning the economic viability of a project closely associated with former President Yoon Suk-yeol. The administration has yet to articulate a clear position on whether it will support continued development. KNOC drilled independently at the field’s most promising structure — known as “Blue Whale” — between December and February, but the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy later confirmed the site failed to yield commercially viable hydrocarbon reserves. Now, under pressure to reduce its own financial exposure, the debt-laden KNOC is courting foreign investment and technical expertise for a second phase of exploration. The company hopes to attract up to 49 percent equity participation from international partners to investigate other potentially productive structures within the offshore block. Energy analysts say foreign bidders are likely to demand policy clarity before committing to a project that could require hundreds of millions of dollars in upfront investment and years of exploration. 2025-06-20 13:59:47

MSCI upgrades Korea's short-selling rating, but cites lingering barriers SEOUL, June 20 (AJP) - Global index provider MSCI has upgraded South Korea’s short-selling accessibility rating in its annual market accessibility review, marking a modest step forward in the nation’s yearslong effort to join the MSCI World Index. Still, the firm warned that broader foreign investor access remains hampered by longstanding structural hurdles. The upgrade — moving South Korea’s short-selling rating from “negative” to “positive” — follows the partial resumption of short-selling in March, after a nearly three-year suspension. The policy shift brought the country one step closer to aligning with international standards, a key requirement for inclusion in MSCI’s flagship index. Yet the review struck a cautious tone overall, underscoring enduring concerns around South Korea’s currency market, investor registration process, and settlement mechanisms. “Despite these reforms, the registration process continues to face operational hurdles,” MSCI said in its report. “Moreover, the limited usage of omnibus accounts and over-the-counter transactions has constrained the impact of related regulatory initiatives.” MSCI also criticized the slow adoption of corporate governance reforms — particularly procedures allowing companies to confirm dividend payouts before record dates. The firm noted that only a small number of companies have implemented the measure, limiting its effectiveness. South Korea has sought inclusion in the MSCI World Index since 2008, when it was placed on the firm’s watch list. Currently, South Korea holds six “negative” ratings across MSCI’s 18 market accessibility criteria, down from seven a year earlier when short-selling access was downgraded. Key areas requiring improvement include liberalization of the foreign exchange market, streamlining of investor registration, modernization of clearing and settlement systems, and expansion of investment products. In April, Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Byoung-hwan met with senior MSCI officials in an effort to underscore the government’s reform agenda and advocate for a more favorable evaluation. 2025-06-20 11:11:53

South Korea's construction output sees sharpest decline in decades SEOUL, June 19 (AJP) - South Korea’s construction sector recorded its steepest quarterly contraction since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, as both public and private projects ground to a halt amid tightening budgets and waning demand. The total value of construction completed in the first quarter fell 21.2 percent year-on-year to 26.87 trillion won (approximately $19.5 billion), according to data released Thursday by the Korea Research Institute for Construction Policy. With the industry employing millions nationwide, the latest downturn is raising alarms about broader economic ripple effects and the potential drag on employment. “While we anticipated a slowdown in private construction, we expected government spending to partially offset the losses,” said Park Sun-gu, head of the institute’s economic and financial research division. “Instead, we’ve seen steep declines across all segments — public, private, civil engineering, and buildings — through April. Both current and leading indicators are now markedly weak.” The dismal figures follow the Bank of Korea’s downward revision of its 2025 economic growth forecast earlier this month, cutting the outlook to just 0.8 percent, citing a drop in household consumption and persistent weakness in construction. The sector’s downturn has worsened progressively over the past year, with quarterly contractions intensifying from 4 percent in the first quarter of 2024 to 9.7 percent in the fourth quarter, before plunging into double-digit territory in early 2025. Leading indicators suggest little relief ahead. Between January and April, the total permitted building area declined 21.4 percent, while the area of construction commencement shrank 22.5 percent. New construction orders also fell by 4.3 percent, signaling sustained sluggishness for the remainder of the year. Industry analysts warn that any recovery will likely be protracted and uneven, with gains concentrated in certain regions or sectors rather than across the board. A full rebound may not begin until next year, they said. Park urged targeted government intervention, including supplementary budgets focused on supporting smaller contractors and regional markets rather than large, Seoul-based firms, in order to address what he described as growing polarization within the industry. The sector's current woes are particularly striking given the typically stable nature of construction completion metrics, which rarely exhibit such dramatic quarterly swings. 2025-06-19 14:44:45

LS, with eyes on Europe and beyond, builds battery, energy empire Editor's Note: This article is the 23rd installment in our series on Asia's top 100 companies, exploring the strategies, challenges, and innovations driving the region's most influential corporations. SEOUL, June 18 (AJP) - Despite mounting uncertainty in the global electric vehicle market, South Korea’s LS Group is standing firm on its long-term investment plans in battery materials and carbon-free electricity, pledging there will be “no reduction in investment,” even if the pace slows. At the 2025 InterBattery exhibition in Seoul on March 5, LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-eun sought to reassure industry stakeholders. “The chasm came after LS decided to invest in battery materials but before we even began the business in earnest,” Koo said, referring to the so-called EV “market chasm.” “I believe the chasm will already be gone by the time the factory is completed.” Production from LS’s upcoming precursor and secondary battery materials facilities — led by its affiliate LS MnM — is expected to begin as early as 2026. The commitment underscores LS Group’s broader push toward a “carbon-free electricity” future, a vision at the heart of its long-term corporate strategy. LS’s investment in secondary battery materials is one of several prongs in its effort to reshape the energy landscape. The group is also expanding its energy storage systems (ESS) portfolio. LS Electric recently signed a contract with Spain’s Power Electronics, while LS Materials introduced hybrid ESS technology — a first for the South Korean market. Further bolstering its renewables footprint, LS Cable & System (LS C&S), one of the group’s core subsidiaries, announced on June 17 that it had been selected as the preferred bidder to supply submarine cables for South Korea’s largest offshore wind farm, a one-gigawatt development off the southwestern coast. The group traces its industrial lineage back to LG Group, originally co-founded in 1947 by Koo In-hoe and Huh Man-jung. LS Group formally spun off from LG in 2003 under the leadership of Koo Ja-hong and launched officially in 2005, inheriting LG’s industrial electronics and materials divisions. Today, LS C&S, LS Electric, and LS MnM serve as the group’s key growth engines. A largely business-to-business conglomerate, LS has extended its global reach over the past decade. Its U.S.-based wire subsidiary, Superior Essex, broke ground in Serbia in 2018 with a new Essex Balkan plant specializing in windings for automotive and electronics markets. The facility boasts 42 production lines and a 12,000-ton annual capacity, aimed squarely at Eastern Europe’s expanding EV sector. LS C&S has also made inroads across Asia and Europe. In Myanmar, it built the country’s largest power cable plant, LS-Gaon Cable Myanmar (LSGM), while in Poland, it completed a plant in 2019 producing EV battery components and communication cables. In a major milestone, the company in 2020 inked a five-year priority supply contract with Danish offshore wind developer Ørsted for ultra-high voltage submarine cables. The group’s recent financial performance reflects this global pivot. According to a first-quarter report released May 16 by LS Corp., the holding company, consolidated operating profit rose 25 percent year-on-year to 304.5 billion won ($223.6 million), while revenue climbed 16 percent to 6.91 trillion won. LS C&S led the growth, with revenue surging 34.4 percent to 1.94 trillion won, buoyed by strong demand for power infrastructure amid an artificial intelligence-driven data center boom. Meanwhile, LS Electric reported flat performance, with revenue inching down to 1.03 trillion won from 1.04 trillion won a year earlier. The metals and materials business, led by LS MnM, posted 2.83 trillion won in revenue — up 12.2 percent — driven by rising global metal prices and favorable currency conditions. In January 2023, Chairman Koo unveiled “Vision 2030,” a roadmap that calls for more than 20 trillion won in investment by the end of the decade, largely focused on carbon-free electricity and next-generation growth engines including batteries, electric vehicles, and semiconductors. “The common challenge for the world over the next 30 years can be summarized in one word: ‘Net Zero,’” said Koo. “And the key to ‘Net Zero’ is carbon-free electricity. The great transformation to this era presents an unprecedented growth opportunity for LS.” 2025-06-19 10:50:33

Forum highlights need for economic 'reboot' in face of industrial upheaval SEOUL, June 18 (AJP) - As South Korea faces mounting pressure to stay competitive in an era of rapid technological change, policymakers and industry leaders gathered Wednesday at a technology forum in Seoul to urge sweeping innovation and a reimagining of the country’s growth strategy. The Aju Future Strategy Forum, hosted by Aju News Corporation and held at the FKI Tower in Yeouido, convened government officials, lawmakers, and economic experts to assess the challenges confronting the nation’s economy amid an evolving industrial landscape. The event's theme — “Reboot Korea” — underscored calls for structural transformation and digital modernization. In a congratulatory message, President Lee Jae-myung called for the urgency, stressing the need to build “new growth engines” while pursuing a vision of “fair growth” that equitably distributes both opportunities and results. Yun Ho-jung, a lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Party, said in an address, “The world is changing — and so must we." "When I heard the theme ‘Reboot Korea,’ I imagined restarting a computer. But the situation requires more than that. We need to insert ‘growth chips’ — that is, fresh ideas and initiatives from government, corporations, and citizens alike," he added. The forum drew a broad range of political and business figures, including former Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Moon Sung-wook, People Power Party lawmaker Na Kyung-won and Reform Party acting leader Chun Ha-ram. Moon, delivering a keynote titled “Renovation K-Economy,” painted a sobering picture of Korea’s economic trajectory. “Even if global trade conditions improve in our favor, it will be difficult to raise growth beyond 1 percent,” he said, calling for accelerated investment in what he described as “killer technologies” and the cultivation of “core talent” to preserve economic security and long-term competitiveness. Quoting from the film Interstellar, Moon added, “We will find a way. We always have.” The forum also featured strategic proposals from Song Jae-ho, chairman of the advisory committee to the National Assembly Speaker, and Kim Sei-wan, president of the Korea Capital Market Institute. Song advocated for the development of “mega city regions” through integrated regional governance, calling for a national “economic remapping” to stimulate balanced growth across provinces. Kim emphasized the urgent need for financial infrastructure reform as the digital economy expands, pointing to the emergence of security tokens as a key area for legislative support. “Without adaptive regulation, financial markets risk falling behind,” he warned. In a panel discussion, panelists tackled a range of challenges hindering South Korea’s AI sector, including rigid and outdated regulatory frameworks, underdeveloped data ecosystems, and inadequate infrastructure support for private companies. Speakers called for a stronger public-private partnership to build the digital foundation necessary for long-term innovation. 2025-06-18 16:40:50

Korean government unveils plan for national AI service, major R&D expansion SEOUL, June 18 (AJP) - South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT announced sweeping plans on Wednesday to accelerate the nation’s artificial intelligence capabilities, pledging to launch a state-sponsored AI service and boost research and development funding by more than 4 trillion won (approximately $2.9 billion). In a policy briefing to the National Policy Planning Committee at the Government Complex in Sejong, ministry officials outlined a strategy that favors promotion over regulation, amid growing global competition in AI technology. The initiative follows a series of high-profile cybersecurity breaches, including a recent hacking incident at telecom giant SK Telecom. The ministry’s blueprint aligns with President Lee Jae-myung’s campaign promise to develop a homegrown version of ChatGPT — dubbed the “Korean GPT” — designed for universal public access. Officials set a goal for the domestic AI model to reach at least 95 percent of the performance benchmark set by top-tier global foundation models. To revive what officials described as a weakened research ecosystem, the government plans to raise R&D investment to 5 percent of overall public spending. The expanded funding will target core areas including AI, biotechnology, defense, and energy, as part of a broader push to meet the administration’s campaign pledges. Among the key challenges outlined were the expansion of AI computing infrastructure, the implementation of supporting legislation under the recently passed AI Basic Act, and the development of general-purpose AI models that can serve diverse applications. The ministry also addressed setbacks in its national AI computing center project. After a failed tender process drew no private sector bids, officials said they would ease requirements for the special-purpose corporation intended to manage the center. New tenders will be issued, or alternative models considered, by next month. In a nod to industry concerns over excessive oversight, the ministry said it is reviewing a proposal from the ruling Democratic Party that would introduce a three-year grace period before the AI Basic Act is fully enforced. The goal, officials said, is to craft "flexible, promotion-oriented" regulations that foster innovation rather than stifle it. The government is also weighing a more centralized governance structure for AI policy. Plans include strengthening the National Artificial Intelligence Committee by appointing a small cohort of private-sector experts and potentially placing the committee under direct presidential leadership. A dedicated AI policy office may be launched as early as August. 2025-06-18 15:21:14

S. Korea plans $14 billion second supplementary budget to boost economy SEOUL, June 17 (AJP) - The South Korean government is expected to introduce a 20 trillion won (approximately $14.6 billion) supplementary budget on Thursday, part of a broader effort to revitalize the nation’s faltering export-driven economy. The proposal, which would mark the second supplementary budget of 2025, is scheduled for submission at the cabinet meeting on June 19. It follows a 13.8 trillion won stimulus package announced in May and is aimed at boosting domestic consumption through targeted fiscal support. According to presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung, President Lee Jae-myung has been closely involved in crafting the new budget. The centerpiece of the package is a nationwide economic recovery program that will distribute cash payments scaled to income levels. Since taking office on June 4, President Lee has consistently advocated for expansionary fiscal policy and direct cash-transfer schemes. His administration’s urgency has been underscored by the Bank of Korea’s recent downward revision of its 2025 growth forecast to 0.8 percent, citing weak household spending and a slump in construction activity. The revised plan moves away from the ruling Democratic Party’s original proposal of universal 250,000 won payouts. Instead, recipients of basic livelihood subsidies would receive 450,000 won in the initial phase. Low-income families and single-parent households would be allotted 350,000 won, while the general public would receive 250,000 won. The budget also earmarks approximately 500 billion won for local currency programs and fiscal adjustments to address revenue shortfalls attributed to policies under former President Yoon Suk Yeol. 2025-06-17 14:44:14

Korean biotech firms showcase innovation at BIO International Convention SEOUL, June 17 (AJP) - Global biotechnology leaders and emerging innovators have convened in Boston as the 2025 BIO International Convention opened, drawing an estimated 20,000 industry professionals from across the world. The four-day event, held at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, marks the 32nd edition of the world’s largest biotechnology trade show. “BIO 2025 offers Korean biotech companies an unparalleled global platform to showcase their technologies and establish transformative partnerships,” said Jurie Hwang, director of public and international relations at the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (KoreaBio). The convention takes place against the backdrop of evolving pharmaceutical markets. With the U.S. under renewed political pressure to curb rising drug prices, South Korean firms are eyeing the American biosimilar market, where several high-profile patents are nearing expiration. South Korea’s pharmaceutical sector made a notable showing at this year’s gathering. Samsung Biologics, Celltrion, Lotte Biologics and SK Biopharmaceuticals were among the major companies hosting large-scale booths aimed at securing global partnerships and licensing agreements. 2025-06-17 10:36:58

Korea Zinc sends first shipment of antimony to US SEOUL, June 16 (AJP) - Korea Zinc, South Korea’s sole producer of antimony, a mineral deemed critical for national defense, has shipped its first direct export of the material to the United States, according to the company officials on Monday. Roughly 20 metric tons of antimony were recently loaded onto a cargo vessel bound for Baltimore, Maryland, marking a significant milestone in Washington’s efforts to diversify sources of critical minerals and reduce its reliance on China. The shipment, arranged as a spot transaction, is expected to arrive next month and be distributed through local importers to approximately 10 American companies, including several major defense contractors, the sources said. “South Korean exports of antimony to the U.S. will play an important role in diversifying supply chains away from their original dependence on China,” said Park So-young, a senior researcher at the Korea International Trade Association. The move comes as the United States seeks to secure more resilient supply chains for strategic materials. Last year, more than 60 percent of America’s antimony imports originated from China, which imposed export controls on the mineral and other critical materials in August. Korea Zinc aims to export about 100 tons of antimony to the United States this year. Beginning in 2025, the company expects to ramp up shipments to more than 240 tons annually, with plans for monthly deliveries of 20 tons. Antimony is a key component in a range of military and high-tech applications. It is used in armor-piercing ammunition, semiconductors, submarine ballast systems, and aerospace technologies. The mineral is also essential in the production of infrared components for the missile warning systems on F-35 fighter jets. 2025-06-16 15:17:01