'Everyone's AI' SKT: Differentiating from ChatGPT by Connecting Korean Content and Public Information

Interview with Kim Jihun, Head of AI Business Division at SK Telecom

Kim Jihun, Head of AI Business Division at SK Telecom, is pictured giving an interview to the media at T Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Provided by SK Telecom.

"Users will experience a quality that is distinct from existing services such as ChatGPT. By connecting Koreanized content and public information, we aim to evolve into 'AI for Everyone,' an artificial intelligence accessible and useful for all."

Kim Jihun, Head of AI Business Division at SK Telecom, stated in a media interview held at T Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 14th, "Actionable agents are the biggest differentiator compared to existing services," adding, "We will leverage our strengths as a telecommunications provider, such as phone and SMS, to conveniently provide users with information that cannot be obtained through search, via phone calls and text messages."

SK Telecom is participating in the government's nationwide general-purpose AI initiative, "AI for Everyone." Based on a domestic foundation model, "AI for Everyone" is a project that offers a general-purpose chatbot and AI agents that any citizen can use free of charge, with the service scheduled to launch in December. After holding the official launch ceremony for the AI for Everyone consortium on the 10th and commencing full-scale collaboration and service implementation, SK Telecom plans to stand out with an end-to-end actionable agent that not only provides information but also understands user situations and completes real administrative procedures and work processes. The company is also expecting synergy since its proprietary AI model, "A.DotX(A.X) K2," recently passed the second-stage evaluation for the Foundation Model (DOKPAMO) project led by the Ministry of Science and ICT, advancing to the final round.

Kim highlighted, "Many people still find apps or the web difficult, and some tasks can only be completed by phone or spoken conversation, regardless of accessibility issues. For example, it is often necessary to call to find out if a public tennis court has toddler chairs, if you can bring your own food, or how much a restaurant charges for corkage (alcohol fee) or room charges (private space fee)—these are often not available via search. We are developing a service where the agent can make the call on behalf of users to obtain such information."

To this end, SK Telecom has partnered with various companies. Kim said, "The SK Telecom consortium is planning services that connect with APIs (application programming interfaces) from partners such as Goodoc and Alfred, which cater to the SMB sector, to enable seamless action execution." He continued, "Shinhan and Hana Card have joined as AI payment infrastructure providers, and we have recently signed MOUs (business agreements) with 11 additional partners, rapidly expanding our network." At a recent government-hosted meeting, SK Telecom demonstrated a working prototype that enabled hospital reservations and inquiries by connecting to the Goodoc API; by year-end, features such as hospital reservations and review searches will be provided.

Rather than simply replicating ChatGPT’s deep research and inference-based responses, SK Telecom intends to differentiate by addressing areas particularly lacking for Korean users, especially public services, and tailor the product to customer expectations. The company set targets of 5 million monthly active users (MAU) this year and 10 million next year. Kim stated, "Current customer service processes require users to request, for example, a resident registration document or apply for grants, and they only receive a notification of results. SK Telecom plans to change this by proactively providing information. For instance, there are effective youth support programs, but uninformed users miss out on benefits. In the case of national projects subsidizing electricity for low-income groups, I have heard that over half the funds are returned to the national treasury simply because people are unaware. Our goal is to create a 'proactive service' that reaches out to those previously marginalized due to lack of information."

To achieve this, the three consortiums participating in the AI for Everyone project are making requests to the government to enable public agents. Kim explained, "We have asked the Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and others to expose necessary information or already-digitized work in the form of APIs or MCPs (Model Context Protocols) so they can be connected to our services." He added, "We are actively discussing with the government whether aspects of personal information management or access methods can be reviewed for compatibility with the agent environment."

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