Science and technology are the seeds of growth and innovation. The science and technology community and the information, broadcasting, and communications community must become the key actors for the nation's leap forward.
Prime Minister Kim Min-seok stated accordingly on Jan. 14 at the "2026 New Year's gathering of science and technology professionals and information, broadcasting, and communications professionals" held at the Korea Science and Technology Center in Gangnam District, Seoul.
Kim said, "We faced difficulties and challenges amid the aftermath of last year's research and development budget cuts and a changed internal and external environment," adding, "Even so, thanks to your efforts, scientific and technological prowess and cultural content are gaining attention overseas." He then mentioned news that Korean corporations took 60% of the Innovation Awards at "CES 2026," the world's largest IT and home appliance exhibition held this month, saying, "We believe that science and technology determine the future."
Kim also addressed the restoration of the vice prime minister system for science and technology. Citing that President Lee Jae-myung emphasized the need multiple times during the presidential campaign, Kim explained, "Restoring the vice prime minister system for the first time in 17 years reflects the resolve to have science and technology lead changes across all ministries from the center."
Kim said, "It is significant that science and technology have come to play a leading role at the center of state affairs," asking the science and technology community to "give a round of applause in support." He also said this year's research and development budget was set at a record-high 35.5 trillion won, and said the government would push media regulatory innovation to restore broadcasting's independence and fairness.
He also presented the realization of broadcasting's public value as a task. He said, "We must make the vision of becoming one of the top three countries in artificial intelligence (AI) a reality," emphasizing that researchers should work together to build an ecosystem where they can take on challenges without fearing failure.
Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon, who attended the event, said, "This will be the first year we leap forward to a bigger and stronger Republic of Korea through the power of science, technology, and information and communications," adding, "We will marshal cross-government capabilities into one to become a science and technology powerhouse." Bae said, "Now all that remains is for us to prove it," adding, "We can certainly become one of the top three countries in AI."
Bae said, "Last year it was difficult even to secure 10,000 graphics processing units (GPUs), but now we are talking about 50,000 and 260,000," adding that discussions on a homegrown AI model have "reached a global level in just six months." He added, "Certain models are homegrown AI models that rank in the world's top 10 and top 7."
The New Year's gathering was co-hosted by The Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies (KOFST) and the Korea Information, Broadcasting and Communications Grand Alliance. More than 600 people, including the prime minister, Vice Prime Minister Bae, academia, researchers, and corporate officials, attended, and the event was held under the theme "Korea's great leap forward through science, technology, and AI." In advance, the event accepted New Year's wish messages from the public and arranged a segment in which experts in each field answered selected questions.