Public Data Can Be Used for AI Training Without Citing Sources... 'Public Nuri' Overhaul

Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Ministry of Science and ICT Introduce "Type 0" and "AI Type"
Expanding Access Beyond Regulatory Sandbox to the Entire Public

From now on, public works owned by the national or local governments can be freely used as data for artificial intelligence (AI) training without the need to indicate the source. The government has significantly relaxed usage standards to address low utilization in the field, which was caused by concerns over copyright infringement and complicated usage conditions.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Ministry of Science and ICT announced the revised “Public Works Usage Permission Marking Standards (Public Nuri)” and the “Plan to Expand the Use of Public Works for AI Training” at the 4th Meeting of Ministers Related to Science and Technology, held at the Government Complex Seoul on January 28.

The core of this reform is the introduction of a new “Type 0,” which allows free use, and a new “AI Type,” which permits use for training purposes even under certain restrictions. The newly introduced Type 0 offers users unprecedented benefits. Previously, it was mandatory to indicate the source when using public works, but for works designated as Type 0, there is no obligation to cite the source. Commercial use and modifications are also permitted without restriction. An official from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism explained, “This measure fundamentally eliminates the burden on companies that had to check and indicate sources for tens of thousands of data items during the rapid processing required for AI training.”

The newly established AI Type further broadens the scope of openness. Even if public works are designated as Type 1 to 4 under Public Nuri, which may restrict commercial use or modifications, if the AI Type is also indicated, the data can be freely used for AI training purposes. As a result, data previously restricted due to copyright issues will be released en masse into the market as resources for AI training.

This government measure expands the authority to use public works, which was temporarily allowed only to certain companies through a regulatory sandbox in September last year, to the entire public. At that time, the government opened 11 million public works exclusively to the “National AI Elite Team.” The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Ministry of Science and ICT plan to apply the new types first to materials with high private sector demand and to encourage participation by reflecting openness performance in public institution evaluations.

In the mid- to long-term, legal and technical foundations will also be strengthened. The “Copyright Act” will be amended to make Public Nuri marking mandatory for public works, and in cooperation with the Korea Culture Information Service Agency, data will be processed into machine-readable formats so that AI can immediately utilize them. Currently, the Korea Copyright Commission provides 7.66 million items of training data through the Sharing Platform, and the Ministry of Science and ICT offers 903 types of data through the AI Hub.

Choi Hwi-young, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, stated, “Public works are a key resource to drive the AI industry,” adding, “We will continue to improve the system so that public data can flow freely in new technology fields.” Baek Kyung-hoon, Minister of Science and ICT, also emphasized, “In line with the principle of maximizing openness for data funded by taxpayer money, we will prioritize application in areas with high private demand to deliver tangible results for the public.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.