South Korea to develop homegrown AI model to rival US, Chinese systems: Report

ISTANBUL

South Korea has launched a national initiative to develop a domestic foundational artificial intelligence (AI) model, aiming to reduce dependence on foreign systems and compete with US and Chinese technologies, according to a CNBC report Friday.

The Ministry of Science and ICT said five consortia have been selected to build AI models using mostly homegrown technology.

Telecom giant SK Telecom leads one consortium, which includes chip startup Rebellions and video game firm Krafton. Others are led by major South Korean firms, including LG and Naver.

The government said the goal is to build domestic capacity across the AI stack, from data centers and software to semiconductors.

Kim Taeyoon, who heads the foundation model office at SK Telecom, told CNBC: “Korea, at the national level, is focusing on ensuring that we lay the technical foundation to have competitiveness.”

The initiative will leverage South Korea’s existing tech ecosystem. SK Hynix, for example, manufactures high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips critical to Nvidia’s AI processors, while Samsung remains a major global player in memory production.

SK Telecom also plans to use its Titan supercomputer—powered by Nvidia GPUs—and a new AI data center being built with Amazon to train its models. Rebellions, part of SKT’s consortium, is developing AI-specific chips to support this work.

Despite the focus on domestic capabilities, the consortia will continue to use Nvidia’s GPUs for training in the short term.

The project is part of Seoul’s broader strategy to build a near self-sufficient AI sector and establish itself as a leader in next-generation technology.