President Yoon Suk Yeol on April 9 speaks at a meeting on the domestic semiconductor industry at the Office of the President in Seoul. (Yonhap News)

By Kim Hyelin

President Yoon Suk Yeol on April 9 pledged public investment of KRW 9.4 trillion in artificial intelligence (AI) and related semiconductors by 2027 and setup of a fund worth KRW 1.4 trillion to help innovative AI chipmakers grow. 

He added that a forthcoming national AI committee under the Office of the President will directly handle national semiconductor strategy with participation from the private sector.

The president that day chaired a meeting on pending chip issues at his office in Seoul's Yongsan-gu District. Participants reviewed construction of a mega cluster for the sector announced in January at a policy debate and discussed the direction of a proposed AI semiconductor initiative.

"To set up an all-out response system that rises to the level of that for a wartime situation, we will review all proposals to attract semiconductor industries starting with investment incentives," he said. "We will comprehensively compare and analyze the investment climates and support systems of key countries to devise bold assistance customized for our country's circumstances."

Proposing the initiative for the nation to get an early jump on the AI and chip markets, President Yoon said, "We will rise to the level of a G3 (world's top three) country in AI technology and get over 10% of the global market for system semiconductors by 2030."

The initiative aims to greatly expand research and development in the AI semiconductor sector such as artificial neural network processing unit and next-generation high bandwidth memory chips, as well as form the presidential committee to promote public-private cooperation in AI chips.

The meeting's participants also decided to develop the next generation of general-purpose AI technologies and related safety know-how in going beyond generative AI.

At the debate in January, President Yoon pledged to build a semiconductor mega cluster for KRW 622 trillion, saying, "The government will be responsible for providing electricity and industrial water essential for the mega cluster."

To this end, he said his administration will strive to swiftly pass a pending bill on expanding the nation's basic power grid. Other plans mentioned in the meeting were exemption of a feasibility study for construction of a pipeline from Paldang Dam in Hanam to Yongin, two cities in Gyeonggi-do Province, and completion of a feasibility study on private funds to build a semiconductor highway within the year.

kimhyelin211@korea.kr