OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, announced the official launch of its Korea office on the 10th, saying it would "work for Korea's AI great transition." OpenAI Korea is the third in Asia after Japan and Singapore and the 12th OpenAI office worldwide.
OpenAI designated Korea as the next-generation global AI hub. Jason Kwon, OpenAI's chief strategy officer (CSO), said that day, "Korea is the optimal place for AI innovation, with world-class infrastructure, innovative corporations, and a fast pace of digital adoption."
Since its launch in 2022, ChatGPT has driven a generative AI boom and grown explosively. Recently, the number of weekly active users worldwide topped 700 million. OpenAI said, "In Korea as well, ChatGPT's weekly users have quadrupled from a year ago, and paying subscribers have more than tripled year over year, making it the largest in Asia." In terms of application programming interface (API) usage, Korea ranks within the global top 10, OpenAI added.
OpenAI Korea said it will closely collaborate with domestic industry, academia, and the government to support the country's AI great transition. Kwon, the CSO, said, "Through advanced technology and diverse collaboration, we hope to create innovations together for Korea's AI transition across industry, academia, and government."
OpenAI has strengthened cooperation with major domestic corporations. In February, it formed a strategic partnership with Kakao and is preparing to link ChatGPT with the Kakao ecosystem. Furthermore, corporations in diverse fields such as construction, electronics, telecommunications, finance, travel, gaming, e-commerce, and entertainment are actively adopting OpenAI's latest AI model, GPT-5. ChosunBiz has also been using ChatGPT to translate articles for its English site, which was launched in December 2024, and on the 9th it adopted the latest version, GPT-5.
OpenAI plans to ramp up research collaboration with academia, starting with an MOU signing with Seoul National University on the 11th. Through the "OpenAI for Countries" initiative, it also plans to strengthen cooperation with the Korean government.
It will also move to support the startup ecosystem. Following the Builder Lab, Korea's first developer workshop held in February, OpenAI plans to host Founders Day on the 12th to provide a networking venue for startups, developers, and venture capitalists (VCs). In Nov., it plans to hold "DevDay Exchange" in Korea, bringing together developers, startups, and AI researchers in one place to share OpenAI's latest technologies.
It also plans to continue growing alongside creators. Twenty-one domestic creators recently participated in "Creative Lab Seoul," an OpenAI workshop on using video and image tools. At the DDP Seoul Light fall event, media art produced with OpenAI's video generation tool "Sora" was projected onto the exterior wall of DDP. Jake Wilczynski, OpenAI's head of communications for Asia-Pacific, said, "Seoul is regarded as one of the most dynamic creative communities in the world and is the city with the largest number of Sora users globally."