[AI Rulemaker]⑥ Im Moonyoung: "Sovereign AI Investment Severely Lacking... Securing Homegrown Models Must Come First"

"Just one year of investment in independent models... too soon to discuss effectiveness"

"Fears of AI-driven job loss and privacy infringements are overblown"

"Severe punishment for misuse of personal data... open up public-interest data uti

Editor's NoteFollowing the European Union, South Korea became the second country in the world to enact a fundamental law on artificial intelligence (AI). Now, half a year after the legislation came into effect, are our laws and systems keeping pace with the rapidly changing technologies and industries? Through the [AI Rulemaker] series, The Asia Business Daily meets with politicians who have led AI-related legislation, seeking institutional solutions for South Korea to survive in the global competition for AI.

Im Moonyoung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, emphasized that the issue with the government's sovereign AI policy is not "excessive investment" but rather a "severe lack" of investment. He argued that an independent foundation model should be viewed as the basis for national existence and that investment should be concentrated until the base model is firmly established.

Regarded as President Lee Jaemyung's "AI strategist," Assemblyman Im has helped draft the government's AI policy at the Presidential National AI Strategy Committee. After winning the by-election as the representative for Gwangsan District in Gwangju, he moved to the National Assembly, where he is translating the changes of the AI era into legislation.

Im Moonyoung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is being interviewed by The Asia Business Daily in his National Assembly office. 2026.8.26 Photo by Kim Hyunmin

In last month's interview with The Asia Business Daily, Im said, "It's only been a year since we invested in an independent foundation model project; it's too soon to judge its effectiveness," stressing, "Because the process of building sovereign AI creates numerous industrial ecosystems, such investment is essential."

He also rejected the argument that focus should shift to applications and services rather than foundational models. "If we haven't even prepared the raw materials (sovereign AI), how can we talk about making other dishes (applied AI)?" he questioned. "First, we need to get our independent foundation model on track, and then build various applications and services based on it," he added.

Assemblyman Im defined AI not merely as a technological innovation but as "a transformation of civilization." He said, "In the past, there were reference cases to follow, but in the AI era, we have to find the answers ourselves and the objectives continue to change." He stressed the need to break the rigidity of the country's overall operations, including employment, education, budgets, and administration.

He also put forward the idea that, amidst the AI rivalry between the US and China, South Korea must build an independent "third zone." He stated, "When major countries come together to discuss global AI strategies, South Korea must be at the table as a board member," adding, "We need to expand investment in the open-source ecosystem and connect our competitive manufacturing and science and technology sectors to AI to find new opportunities."

He also cautioned against excessive concern over job loss stemming from AI transformation. "It's not so much that AI has reduced the need for workers, but rather that companies sometimes use AI as an excuse to lay off existing employees," he diagnosed. He went on to say, "The fear that AI will eliminate all jobs, as well as the rosy expectation that it will create enormous employment opportunities, are both excessive." He emphasized the need to verify changes based on actual implementation cases.

He also called for a balance between personal data protection and data utilization. "Our society harbors excessive fear about personal data breaches," he said. "Yet, ironically, punishment for data leaks or misuse is lenient." He argued that society should open the way to use personal data for technological advancements, but strictly punish malicious use of information such as voice phishing or stalking.

Im Moonyoung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is interviewed by The Asia Business Daily at the National Assembly office. 2026.8.26 Photo by Kim Hyunmin

The following is a Q&A with Assemblyman Im.

- You moved from the Presidential AI Strategy Committee to the National Assembly. What new challenges have emerged?

▲ In the past, we just referred to the right answers and assigned roles to ministries to advance toward a goal. But now that we have become an advanced economy, and since no one has experienced the AI era before, there are no clear answers. We must find the solutions ourselves, and the objectives are moving targets. The role of the National Assembly is to coordinate policies across ministries and turn them into legislation and government policy.

- Do you view AI as more than just a technological development?

▲ AI is not simply about learning a new skill to make more money; it is a civilization-level change that transforms our entire political, economic, and social systems. We must remove the rigidity from employment, education, budgets, and resource management, and change our management style. With such rapid change, sticking to annual budget cycles makes no sense. If necessary, we should be able to create budgets for just one or two months at a time.

- There are criticisms that the government is excessively focused on sovereign AI.

▲ The problem is not that we are investing too much in sovereign AI, but that we are investing far too little. It's not even been a full year since the government began investing in an independent foundation model project—how can anyone say that's excessive? Sovereign AI is the basis for national existence, and building it will give rise to numerous ecosystems. Such investment is necessary.

- What is your view on the argument that we should focus on applications and services over foundational models?

▲ Ideally, we would pursue both foundation models and their applications simultaneously, but there is a necessary order. If we can’t even produce the raw materials and the base soup, it makes no sense to be talking about other dishes. We first need to get our own foundation model, and then build a variety of application services on top of that. If we rush, investments will only be diluted from the outset.

- What AI strategy should Korea pursue between the US and China?

▲ We need to create our own third zone and find opportunities there. When major countries gather to discuss global AI strategy, South Korea must be included as a board member. Our investment in the open-source ecosystem, which accounts for 90 percent of the world's software, is less than one percent. We need to expand our participation in open source, and connect our strengths in manufacturing and science and technology to AI.

- How will the 'AI Basic Society' proposed by the Lee Jaemyung administration change people's lives?

▲ Imagine that every citizen has a personal assistant—taking care of your health, concerns, economic plans, and schedule, notifying you of problems before they occur. Just as Hunminjeongeum lowered the barrier to knowledge and led to democratization and information sharing, if everyone has an AI assistant, the power structures based on knowledge inequality and information imbalance can also collapse.

- You are the head of the AI Democracy Committee within the Democratic Party's Party Reform Task Force. What is your vision for its role?

▲ It is not just about using AI in politics, but about fundamentally changing the nature of politics itself. Current representative democracy assumes 'space' in the form of regions or districts, but in the future, it may select representatives based on 'time'—by generations. For example, if members of each age group and gender are elected as representatives, young people will prepare for life 30, 40, 50 years ahead. We must fundamentally rethink the structure of democracy itself.

- Why did you sponsor the 'K-FDE Promotion Act' as your first bill?

▲ The FDE (Forward-Deployed Engineer) means young AI natives and digital experts will go into small and medium-sized businesses, independently identify problems, and create solutions. It's not about employment support, consulting, or system integration projects. It spans across multiple ministries—education, employment, entrepreneurship, R&D—and is difficult to explain within the framework of existing projects. I sought to create new legal and budgetary foundations appropriate for this new field.

- There is deep concern that AI will take away people's jobs. What is your perspective?

▲ It is true that AI is expected to reduce jobs, and in fact some jobs are already disappearing. However, more than AI reducing workloads, there are cases where companies are using AI as a pretext to lay off existing staff. Both the fear that AI will eliminate all jobs and the blind optimism that AI will create enormous new employment are excessive. We must continually compare and verify actual implementation cases to respond quickly.

- How should we resolve the conflict between personal data protection and data utilization?

▲ We are overly sensitive and fearful about the concept of personal data breaches. For example, collecting data from cancer patients to develop new drugs brings real benefits to patients, but if we block this on the grounds of privacy, the patients themselves will ultimately suffer. Ironically, punishment for data leaks or misuse is quite lenient in our society. We should open up data use, but punish abuse—such as voice phishing or stalking—severely.

- What are the key criteria for success in Gwangju's autonomous driving demonstration city?

▲ Gwangju is the only city in the country to offer itself as a full-scale testing ground for autonomous driving. To leverage the resulting data, insights, and strengths, an integrated support system from the central government is required. Opportunities for direct citizen participation should also be created. Everything from autonomous vehicle controllers and new insurance products to assignment of liability in case of accidents must be concretely designed.

- What role do you expect from Hyundai Motor Company?

▲ Hyundai Motor Company should clearly present its autonomous driving strategy and future vision so that small and mid-sized partner firms can observe and prepare. In the US, tech company leaders outline what they intend to do in advance, and suppliers and partners adjust to that direction. Making such plans public prompts societal discussion, and collective intelligence leads to strategic revision. Hyundai Motor Company also needs this kind of leadership.

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