Interest and concerns around the military use of AI have grown significantly, spurred by its deployment in U.S. operations, as South Korea ramps up discussions on establishing defense AI systems.
The utilization of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in U.S. military actions, such as airstrikes on Iran and the operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, has raised significant global interest and concern regarding the military applications of AI. In South Korea, discussions are intensifying among government entities and the National Assembly about institutionalizing defense-related AI and advancing technical developments. Currently, South Korean military applications of AI include some boundary systems like the analysis of surveillance video data, aimed at minimizing false alarms and vulnerabilities in surveillance systems. However, the technology's level is still considered early-stage compared to sophisticated AI systems used in contemporary U.S. military operations.
The South Korean government is accelerating its transition to AI in defense, as highlighted by the National AI Strategy Committee's recent approval of the "Republic of Korea AI Action Plan." This plan outlines a vision for developing a 'smart elite military,' especially in light of projections that the country's active military personnel, currently around 450,000, may drop to approximately 350,000 by 2040 due to low birth rates. Hence, there is an increased urgency to fill potential combat gaps through the unmanned and intelligent weapon systems driven by AI, with ambitions to elevate South Korea into one of the world's top four arms manufacturing nations.
A significant barrier to the development of domestic defense AI has been the 'data barrier,' which has limited access to military-produced data, classified as military secrets. This restriction also complicates civilian enterprises' efforts to understand the necessary data for defense AI development. To address this issue, the Ministry of National Defense convened the Defense Data & AI Committee, led by Deputy Minister Lee Doo-hee, on June 6, deciding to establish regional cooperation centers across five locations that will facilitate collaboration between military, industry, and academia to harness defense data for AI projects.
