Four-Month AI Leadership Vacuum Filled
From Planning to Outcomes… Acceleration of “AI Top 3 Global Power” Strategy
The government’s AI policy command structure will be reorganized into a three-way system of Lee Haemin, Ha Jungwoo, and Paik Kunghoon, connecting the Presidential Office, the National AI Strategy Committee, and the Ministry of Science and ICT, thereby ending a four-month leadership vacuum. With major government-driven AI initiatives—such as the independent AI foundation model (Dokpamo) and the National AI Computing Center—now entering full-scale implementation, policy priorities are shifting from planning to tangible outcome generation, accelerating the strategy to position Korea among the world’s top three AI powerhouses.
From the left, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Baek Jonghun, former AI Chief Ha Jungwoo, appointed as Vice Chairman of the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy Committee, and Lee Haemin, appointed as AI Future Planning Secretary at the Presidential Secretariat, and Cho Gukhyun, a member of the Innovation Party.
The Presidential Office announced on the 30th the appointment of Lee Haemin as the new Chief Secretary for AI Future Planning and Ha Jungwoo as the Standing Vice Chairman of the National AI Strategy Committee, thus resolving the approximately four-month vacancy in the key leadership for the government’s AI control tower.
Under this new regime, Secretary Lee will coordinate inter-ministerial AI policy from the Presidential Office, while Vice Chairman Ha will establish mid- to long-term national AI strategies within the National AI Strategy Committee. Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Paik Kunghoon will focus on implementing specific policies and projects, thereby providing further momentum to the current administration’s AI roadmap toward becoming a global AI leader. This division of duties is expected to maximize efficiency and alignment with the presidential vision for AI policy.
Secretary Lee is regarded as an AI policy expert with experience in both global IT corporations and the National Assembly, making him well-suited to foster the AI industry, manage regulations, and harmonize complex inter-agency interests. After serving as a product manager at Google Korea for 10 years and later as a senior PM at Google headquarters, he entered the 22nd National Assembly in 2024 as a proportional representative of the National Innovation Party, leading legislative and policy discussions related to AI.
Vice Chairman Ha is also a recognized AI expert, having led AI research at Naver and previously serving as the inaugural Chief Secretary for AI Future Planning in the current administration, where he drafted fundamental AI policy blueprints. Since the inception of the National AI Strategy Committee, he has played a key role in designing and guiding national strategies to elevate Korea to “AI G3” status. He is expected to further solidify mid- to long-term strategies for Korea’s advancement as one of the world’s top three AI nations in his capacity as the de facto head of the committee.
This cabinet reshuffle comes at a critical point as major government AI projects move into the execution phase. The government is actively working on the development of the Dokpamo model, securing graphics processing units (GPUs), and building the National AI Computing Center to strengthen AI technology and infrastructure. At the same time, it is promoting AI transformation (AX) across all industries, including manufacturing and bio, as well as the “AI for All” initiative to ensure that all citizens benefit from AI. Given the scale of budgets and infrastructure involved, delivering results that industry and the general public can tangibly experience has become a key objective.
The success of the new leadership structure will depend on how well the Presidential Office, the National AI Strategy Committee, and the Ministry of Science and ICT divide responsibilities and cooperate. As core projects—ranging from Dokpamo development to industrial AX—span multiple ministries and private-sector partners, the challenge is to ensure seamless inter-ministerial policy coordination by the Presidential Office, inclusive feedback gathering by the National AI Strategy Committee, and efficient project execution by the Ministry of Science and ICT.
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Secretary Lee stated on social media, “Strengthening national power through AI has moved beyond declaration and into execution,” emphasizing, “I will fulfill the role of a control tower that turns Korea’s national AI strategy into industrial innovation and service changes felt by our people.” Vice Chairman Ha also expressed his commitment: “AI competition has quickly expanded beyond simple technology races to become an arena of national technology and security rivalry. I will upgrade Korea’s mid-to-long-term strategy for achieving ‘AI G3’ status and swiftly deliver outcomes that the public can experience, striving to realize a sustainable AI powerhouse.”
This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.
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