South Korea's Science Minister: Frontier AI Models are Geopolitical Assets Like Nuclear Weapons

By Kang Jae-eun

SEJONG, July 20 (Yonhap) -- Frontier artificial intelligence (AI) models could become a strategic, geopolitical asset akin to nuclear weapons, South Korea's science minister said Monday, as he reiterated his stance that the country should develop its own frontier AI model.

The comments from Science Minister Bae Kyung-hoon came after Chinese AI startup Moonshot unveiled its latest open-weight AI system, Kimi K3, which the company said delivers performance approaching the U.S. giant Anthropic's frontier Fable model.

The launch also underscores how quickly Chinese companies could narrow the technology gap with their U.S. peers at a significantly lower cost, as it came a month after Washington abruptly banned foreign access to Anthropic's Fable and Mythos models, citing security concerns.

"I think the tendency for certain countries to seek control of AI models of this caliber will only grow stronger, as frontier-level AI models are becoming more like a nuclear weapon," Bae said at the conference, marking his first year in office.

"We are formulating a plan and persuading relevant parties inside the government, with the thought that South Korea should take on the challenge of developing a frontier AI model to achieve world-class AI competitiveness," he added.

South Korea is also seeking to become a "full-stack" provider of AI to other countries, supporting nations such as Tibet and Mongolia with every layer of the technology, from AI models to services and advanced semiconductors, the minister said.

"Many countries are requesting cooperation with South Korea in science, technology and AI," he said. "I think countries see us as a partner that they can cooperate with, and not have to worry about being subordinated to, unlike the U.S. or China," he said.

When asked his thoughts on how South Korea should respond if China suggests the country join its AI cooperative network, Bae said the issue should be discussed further, as AI models from both China and the United States are used here.

"China is strongly hoping South Korea could join its AI cooperation network, but considering many relationships with the U.S. government ... we need to make efforts to find the best approach while also strengthening our independent AI capabilities," Bae said.