South Korea raises 2027 budget to fund sovereign AI development
South Korea just announced a major push to create what Lee Jae Myung calls the "world's highest performance" sovereign AI by the 2027 budget.
President Lee Jae Myung is boosting next year's budget by 12.8% (to $610.14 billion) with 4.7 trillion won specifically for developing a sovereign AI model.
The plan also includes nearly doubling this year's spending on semiconductors, physical AI and AI data centers.
Seoul to train 2,000 semiconductor experts
The country isn't stopping at just tech: there are plans to train 2,000 semiconductor experts and expand AI education for students.
Even with all this spending, South Korea's economy is looking strong: the International Monetary Fund expects 3.3% growth in 2026, and October saw record exports of $115.3 billion with a hefty trade surplus of $42.5 billion.
President Lee says these investments are about keeping innovation rolling without piling on government debt.