The government said nothing has been specifically decided regarding speculation that it would develop a homegrown "Mythos"-class artificial intelligence (AI) model using excess tax revenues stemming from the semiconductor sector. It also said there are no plans yet for a supplementary budget or for securing graphics processing units (GPUs).
According to government authorities on the 2nd, the Ministry of Science and ICT has recently discussed a direction for developing a frontier-class homegrown AI model as the global race for AI supremacy has intensified in the wake of the Mythos incident. An official at the Ministry of Science and ICT said it is true the ministry conducted a comprehensive review of the direction of the existing homegrown foundation model (Dokpamo) project as frontier-class AI models have become national strategic assets, but added that nothing has been specifically decided and that discussions are in the early stages.
The Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Planning and Budget released an explainer the same day, saying a supplementary budget has not been considered at all, and that any push to develop a frontier-class AI model by securing GPUs and the like has not been decided and is not true.
In the background is a measure on the 12th of last month in which the U.S. administration completely blocked foreign nationals from accessing Anthropic's top-tier AI models "Mythos 5" and "Fable 5," citing national security. Afterward, the two models saw their services abruptly halted worldwide, and services resumed on the 1st as export controls were lifted. Observers noted that since this is effectively the first time the United States has targeted an AI model itself for export control, a trend has begun in earnest to treat AI models as control targets on par with strategic weapons.
Industry voices say the existing Dokpamo project alone makes it hard to narrow the gap with global frontier models. They argue that under the current approach of dispersing resources across multiple teams, it is difficult to secure the scale of resources needed to develop a frontier-class model.
Since last year, the Ministry of Science and ICT has supported AI model development by allocating GPUs to four teams—LG AI Research Institute, SK Telecom, Upstage, and Motif Technologies—through the Dokpamo project.