'The Era of the AI Revolution Surpassing the Industrial Revolution': Key Issues Facing the National Assembly [AI Rule Maker]

"AI Regulation Should Be Smartly Eased, Electricity and Data Must Be Opened"
"Preparing for AX Transition: A Framework for Societal Change That Considers Vulnerable Groups"
Securing Talent and Reforming the Legislative System Are Key Tasks

Artificial intelligence (AI) is fundamentally transforming our society. Deciding how to utilize AI, which presents both new opportunities and potential threats, will be a challenge we must address in the future. The Asia Business Daily conducted interviews with nine lawmakers who have taken the lead in AI-related legislation. Based on these interviews, we have summarized the key issues our political circles—and, by extension, our entire society—must resolve.

With respect to strategies for fostering the AI industry, voices from both ruling and opposition parties emphasized the need for regulatory easing. Jungah Hwang, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, argued, "Amid intense competition between the United States and China, our country urgently requires national-level support to distinguish itself and surge ahead. Imposing regulations before even starting out is like running a marathon with sandbags strapped to your legs." She stressed the necessity of regulatory relief.

Lawmaker Jungah Hwang further argued, "For regulations where high risks are anticipated, targeted policies can be applied selectively, one by one. If all regulations are applied uniformly, the industry will face significant difficulties. Deferring regulations doesn't mean doing nothing—there should also be complementary measures like a 'safe harbor' provision that exempts companies from liability if they have sincerely abided by government standards, even if mistakes occur. The country needs to create an environment where companies are free to innovate and compete."

Chulsoo Ahn, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, stated, "We need forward-looking legislation that anticipates technological and industrial trends and proactively removes unnecessary regulations. It is difficult for a latecomer country like Korea to compete if it is subject to the same stringent regulations as leading nations."

Issues of Electricity Supply and Data Must Be Addressed

Concerns were also raised regarding the essential issue of electricity supply for AI. Hyungdoo Choi, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, explained, "Although the Artificial Intelligence Data Center (AIDC) Act was passed, it ultimately did not include provisions for direct liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply. In situations where grid connection is difficult, the law should be revised to allow the temporary use of gas turbines. After utilizing LNG, the transition can be made to hydrogen power or small modular reactors (SMRs)." He proposed using LNG as a practical bridge solution given the challenges of securing a power supply network.

Regarding another key pillar of AI, data (specifically, information), Hyungdoo Choi noted, "Copyright must be protected, but outright blocking AI training and usage cannot be the answer. There needs to be clear usage standards and principles of responsibility that balance personal data and copyright protection with industrial utilization." Kwangjae Lee, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, also asserted, "Data only becomes meaningful once it is converted into an application programming interface (API). While personal information should be protected, APIs should be openly accessible." He added, "We have created a country where, under the pretext of protecting personal information—which we don't even protect effectively—we end up not utilizing data. The United States manages to strictly protect privacy while also utilizing data, and we need to adopt more of this approach."

Lawmaker Jungah Hwang also noted, "Good models are created from good data, but high-quality data is often regarded as a valuable asset by companies and researchers, making them reluctant to release it. That's why I introduced the National Research Data Act, which standardizes and manages state-funded research data and provides it free of charge."

Moonyeong Im, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, commented, "We tend to approach the concept of personal information breaches with excessive sensitivity and fear. If we collect data from cancer patients to develop new drugs, the benefit ultimately returns to the patients, but if we block this due to privacy concerns, the patients are the ones who suffer." He highlighted the irony in our society: "There is leniency toward those who leak or abuse personal data, which is ironic. We must open up data usage while strictly punishing misuse such as voice phishing or stalking."

Need for Societal Preparedness for AX

However, there were also calls for legislative measures in anticipation of the dramatic, industrial revolution-scale changes that AI may bring across society in a very short period of time.

Haemin Lee, former lawmaker from the Rebuilding Korea Party and currently Chief of Future AI Planning at the Blue House, introduced the AI Transition Response Act while in office. The bill included measures to increase corporate contributions in cases of layoffs due to AI introduction, while offering benefits to companies that create jobs. Chief Lee explained, "If we only focus on productivity improvements, social sustainability disappears, and when that happens, the sustainability of industries vanishes as well. That is the philosophy with which I designed this bill."

Juhui Lee, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, is preparing the (provisional) Korea-style Online Safety Act. She is considering legislation to go beyond the current Information and Communication Network Act and introduce a framework that protects vulnerable groups such as children and adolescents during the AI transition (AX). She argues that a comprehensive system is needed that adds protection for socially marginalized groups in the AI era.

Given the all-encompassing nature of the AX transformation, there was also a suggestion that the National Assembly’s legislative review organizations should evolve accordingly. Chief Haemin Lee pointed out, "For matters related to AI, there needs to be a body with overall responsibility, similar to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. Currently, all bills are concentrated in that committee; at the very least, there should be a subcommittee within it." He emphasized the importance of expert checks at the legislative stage to prevent various bills related to the AI transition from diverging in different directions. He further explained, "Even if a draft law poses no textual problem, it can raise questions from an industrial perspective. If these issues cannot be resolved, there should be at least two AI, IT, or digital experts in each relevant standing committee, or such experts should be seconded as necessary."

The Key to AI Success: Urgent Need to Nurture Talent

The necessity of nurturing talent was also highlighted. Lawmaker Jungah Hwang said, "Among the bills recently passed at the plenary session, there is one allowing researchers at the four major institutes of science and technology and government-funded research institutions to receive consulting fees or hold positions in companies founded with their own technology. Since transforming researchers’ technology into startups is the fastest path, these forms of 'deep tech entrepreneurship' must be encouraged."

Lawmaker Chulsoo Ahn also remarked, "Regulations should be relaxed so that university professors can serve as corporate executives or start their own companies, allowing for more flexible mobility between academia and industry. I heard that, for the first time, a Seoul National University professor is now concurrently serving as an executive at Samsung Electronics. This is a welcome development, because that way we can retain top professors and students in Korea and also foster practical, field-ready talent."

Dongjin Koh, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, stated, "We need to create an environment where companies can secure and focus on top talent. Systems should be revised to expand military service exemptions for core AI and semiconductor personnel and allow major companies to make full use of the personnel they need. The 52-hour workweek and compensation systems should also be adapted flexibly to reflect the realities of R&D." Notably, there was also a suggestion to address the issue of blind trusts, which prevent entrepreneurs from participating in the National Assembly and policy-making. While policymaking needs input from business people and scientists, current regulations stand as barriers to their entry.

With regard to this, he stated, "I agree with the intention to prevent conflicts of interest, but instead of requiring all stocks to be sold unconditionally, a system could be considered where trading is prohibited during or after a set period following service. We need to establish more reasonable systems so that business people who understand the industrial field can put their experience to use in the National Assembly."

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