"Everyone Can Join"... Ministry of Science and ICT Launches National AI Competition

Targeting Over 2 Million Participants
Baek Kyunghoon: "AI Competitiveness Will Determine National Competitiveness"

The Ministry of Science and ICT has launched a competition to discover innovative ideas for AI technology and service development, as well as AI-powered solutions for public institutions. The event aims to encourage participation from people of all ages and backgrounds, setting a target of 2 million participants.

The Ministry of Science and ICT held the opening ceremony of the National AI Competition on the 26th at EL Tower in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Byungseon Gong

The Ministry of Science and ICT held the opening ceremony for the National AI Competition on March 26 at EL Tower in Seocho-gu, Seoul. The competition, which will run from next month through November, offers a total prize pool of 3 billion won and aims to attract over 2 million participants. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Baek Kyun stated, "AI is no longer something just for a select group of experts. We are entering an era where a nation's competitiveness will depend on how it utilizes AI." He added, "The government seeks to actively promote 'AI for All,' enabling everyone to experience the value and accessibility of AI. This competition marks the first step toward realizing that vision together with the public."

Deputy Prime Minister Baek also held a Q&A session on AI with attendees at the event. When asked about AI and security, he said, "Rather than focusing on the risks, we should see that, just as humans use various languages, computer languages are becoming barrier-free through AI. I hope people approach AI as something easily accessible and usable." Regarding the rapid advancement of AI and related education, he explained, "All ministries are preparing AI education programs for all demographics, not just for this competition. This year alone, we are investing over 600 billion won in educational programs. Like this competition, AI education programs will be introduced through a unified online platform."

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Baek Kyun is speaking at the opening ceremony of the "National AI Competition" held on the 26th at L Tower in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Gong Byungseon

The Ministry of Science and ICT has subdivided the competition into categories so that people of all ages and backgrounds can participate. For the general public, the competition includes an AI quiz contest, a call for AI use cases, and an AI bug-hunting contest, all open to anyone. For elementary, middle, and high school students, there will be an AI creation contest and a "Robotics Challenge," which combines robotics experience education with problem-solving. University students and researchers can participate in the "AI Rookie and AI Champion Competitions," which focus on developing AI technologies and services using their academic expertise. There will also be a "Defense AI Competition" and a "Defense AI Idea Contest" for military personnel. In addition, young people who have taken a break from work or women with career experience can participate in the "Reboot AI Utilization Competition," where they can create actual deliverables after receiving AI training.

This competition will also promote the adoption of domestic AI services by integrating offerings from Korean companies. There will be separate domestic AI tracks within the AI Rookie and AI Champion Competitions, and the AI Creation Contest will also use domestic AI services to create submissions. Outstanding participants identified in the competition may be offered employment and startup opportunities through government programs run by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. In particular, excellent ideas and achievements will be supported through the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' "Entrepreneurship for All" program, to help turn them into real startups.

Deputy Prime Minister Baek emphasized, "This will be a competition for everyone, open to the general public, students, researchers, and even vulnerable groups, regardless of age or background. We also aim to further promote and spread the use of domestic AI."

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