[Op-Ed] AI Middle Powers Should Build Up Talent Networks

Kee-Eung Kim, Director of the National AI Research Lab (NAIRL), and Yihwan Cho, Researcher at NAIRL, published an opinion piece in Nikkei Asia, arguing that AI middle powers such as South Korea need to build international research networks and talent partnerships as strategic assets beyond data centers and GPU capacity.

The op-ed notes that across Asia, the AI race is increasingly being measured in gigawatts, GPU counts, and server capacity. However, data, advanced chips, and power infrastructure are increasingly treated as national strategic assets, making them difficult to pool across borders. By contrast, researchers and ideas can move more freely, and foundational AI research collaboration offers a more feasible path for countries to build shared research capacity while reducing sovereignty-related conflicts.

Backed by the Ministry of Science and ICT through the Institute of Information & Communications Technology Planning & Evaluation (IITP), NAIRL is putting this vision into practice by connecting 45 faculty members from KAIST, Korea University, Yonsei University, and POSTECH, along with 19 overseas faculty collaborators from 13 institutions across four countries. NAIRL is also expanding research ties with leading global AI institutions, including RIKEN AIP in Japan, the Vector Institute in Canada, and PRAIRIE in France, as it works to build an international research network where AI middle powers can set shared research agendas and build long-term trust.

Check out more details in the article below.
📎 https://asia.nikkei.com/opinion/ai-middle-powers-should-build-up-talent-networks