SEOUL, Oct 6 (Reuters) – South Korea plans to launch a 4.7 trillion won ($3.5 billion) programme to develop a frontier AI model from March 2027, the science ministry said, as Seoul seeks to compete in the race to build cutting-edge artificial intelligence.
Here are some details:
• The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to select a lead developer through a competitive tender after parliament approves the 2027 budget in December, with the winner potentially chosen as early as February, it said.
• The government plans to combine state equity investment with private funding and concentrate computing chips, data and talent on the project, which aims to develop a model with leading performance.
• The ministry said the initiative would be separate from its home-grown foundation model programme, which will continue and select two final teams in a third-stage review in February 2027.
• Participation will be open to various entities including single companies, consortiums or special-purpose vehicles, it said, adding it aimed to allow startups, firms, universities and researchers to play leading roles.
($1 = 1,344.5000 won)
(Reporting by Joyce LeeEditing by Ed Davies)
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