It is reported that President Lee Jae Myung has unveiled a record 728 trillion won ($525 billion) budget for 2026, marking an 8.1 percent increase from the previous year, with a significant emphasis on artificial AI as a national priority. The budget allocates 10.1 trillion won to accelerate South Korea’s advancement toward becoming one of the world’s top three AI powers, more than tripling the current AI-related budget. This investment includes 2.6 trillion won for integrating AI across industries, daily life, and public services, and 7.5 trillion won for workforce training and AI infrastructure development. Additionally, the government plans to invest approximately 6 trillion won over the next five years to drive AI transformation in core industries such as robotics, automobiles, shipbuilding, home appliances, semiconductors, and manufacturing. The budget also increases funding for research and development in strategic sectors by 19.3 percent to a record 35.3 trillion won and proposes the creation of a 150 trillion won National Growth Fund over the next five years to nurture high-tech industries. On defense, the military budget will rise by 8.2 percent to 66.3 trillion won, focusing on modernizing weapons systems with AI-driven capabilities. President Lee emphasized the government’s responsibility to protect vulnerable segments of society from the disruptive effects of rapid technological change and called for bipartisan cooperation to pass the budget within the legal deadline.
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