The OECD.AI Policy Navigator

While machines replaced manual labour of humans during the industrialization in the past, artificial intelligence now is developing beyond automation to a level that can perform intelligent tasks that could only be done by humans. As AI is causing a paradigm shift not only in terms of technology but one that encompasses all sectors including humanities, Korea is preparing for the shift on national and social levels.

Korea's Ministry of SMEs and Startups secured 264 B200 GPUs under the National AI Project to support SMEs and startups. Delivered free via NHN Cloud, two programmes are funded: a manufacturing project (64 GPUs) targeting production and quality control AI, and a startup incubator (200 GPUs) covering strategic AI development, industry-specific solutions, and early-stage founder support. Applications run April–May, support commences June 2025.

South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) is investing approximately KRW 1.46 trillion (around USD 1.1 billion) to procure 13,000 high-performance GPUs, distributed across three cloud service providers — Naver Cloud, NHN Cloud, and Kakao. Announced in July 2025, the initiative aims to expand domestic AI computing infrastructure, reduce reliance on overseas resources, and support AI research, large-scale model training, and national AI initiatives.

The initiative is aimed at making Korea a global pivotal state in AI by becoming one of the G3 AI nations. It outlines the four nationwide AI flagship projects and four key pillars of the AI ecosystem: 1) Develop startup talent, 2) Innovate technology and infrastructure, 3) Lay a foundation for inclusion and fairness, and 4) Secure global leadership.

To focus on supporting the nine key technological innovation tasks for AI-semiconductors, the government will pursue the following initiatives to comprehensively support the entire AI-semiconductor value chain: 1)Comprehensive investment and financial support, 2) Talent development, 3) Establishment of industrial and research innovation infrastructure, 4) Global cooperation and market entry, and 5)Leadership in AI ethical standards