![[Rumman Chowdhury] Sovereign AI: A new frontier of national ambition](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwimg.heraldcorp.com%2Fnews%2Fcms%2F2025%2F07%2F09%2Fnews-p.v1.20250709.05104fae08db49b48fbff54b41283daf_T1.jpg&w=3840&q=100)
[Rumman Chowdhury] Sovereign AI: A new frontier of national ambition
The geopolitical landscape is shifting rapidly. The US-China rivalry over AI supremacy has made clear that technology is now a front line in global power struggles. Smaller countries, wary of becoming pawns in this contest, are investing heavily in their own AI capabilities. Brazil and India, for example, have collectively committed billions to build sovereign AI infrastructures, fearing that reliance on foreign technology could compromise their security and autonomy. Across Southeast Asia and the Middle East, national strategies increasingly prioritize AI sovereignty, not just to keep pace with global powers, but to avoid being left behind in a world embroiled in an AI arms race.
Other Asian nations have emerged as major players in sovereign AI, with some viewing them as a 'buffer' between global hegemonic powers China and US. South Korea is aggressively pursuing sovereign AI to establish technological autonomy and cultural relevance, anchored by a landmark $735 billion investment pledge from President Lee Jae Myung. This strategy centers on developing domestically tailored AI systems trained on Korean language data and historical context, moving beyond reliance on foreign platforms. Key architect Ha Jung-woo, appointed as the nation's first Chief Secretary for AI Future Strategy, advocates for "sovereign AI that has learned from Korea's culture and history," prioritizing infrastructure like 5,000+ GPUs for selected "national AI champions".
Crucial to this vision is the SK Group-Amazon Web Services partnership building South Korea's largest AI data center in Ulsan, alongside legislative foundations like the AI Basic Act (effective January 2026). As the EU's peer in comprehensive AI regulation, this law establishes governance for "high-impact" AI systems while promoting public-private collaboration. Importantly, government-supported AI projects will be open-sourced for broad societal use.
The initiative targets strategic sectors like semiconductors and biotechnology, aligning with national goals to rank among the world's top three AI powers by 2030. This includes expanding GPU capacity 15-fold and achieving 70% industrial AI adoption. Security dimensions are addressed through the National AI Security Consultative Group, though the AI Basic Act explicitly excludes military applications from its scope. While open-source frameworks and regional coalitions offer pragmatic pathways, South Korea's sovereign AI ambitions remain a high-stakes gamble balancing cultural preservation against technical and economic constraints. Structural challenges persist -- limited Korean-language datasets, GPU procurement hurdles, and dependence on foreign infrastructure threaten scalability.
For all sovereign AI developers, the economic stakes are enormous. AI is projected to add trillions to the global economy by the end of the decade. Nations like Saudi Arabia and Malaysia are pouring resources into local AI ecosystems, determined to capture this value for themselves rather than see it flow to Silicon Valley or Shenzhen. The message is clear: countries want to be creators, not just consumers, of the AI revolution. This lesson was hard-learned from the early days of the internet, which was dominated by Silicon-Valley based search engines, shopping websites, and social media platforms. Local leaders now seek to foster homegrown talent, build domestic industries, and ensure that the economic benefits of AI accrue to their own citizens.
Culturally, the need for sovereign AI is even more urgent. Most of the world's leading AI models are trained on English-language data, leaving non-English speakers, and their unique cultural contexts, at a disadvantage. Indonesia's massive Bahasa-speaking population and Saudi Arabia's Arabic-first models are early examples of how countries are tailoring AI to their own languages and traditions. These efforts are not just about better translation or customer service; they are about ensuring that AI reflects and respects local values, histories, and identities.
But building truly sovereign AI is no small feat. It requires not just advanced algorithms, but also robust data infrastructure, massive computing power, local talent and effective governance. The European Union's Gaia-X and India's Bhashini initiative are pioneering efforts to create secure, locally controlled data environments. Denmark is investing in domestic supercomputers, while Singapore and Taiwan are developing their own large language models. In addition, many nations are capitalizing on the Trump administration's purge of scientific talent to draw talent away from the United States. These projects are ambitious, but they are also fraught with complexities.
The technical and economic hurdles are formidable. Training a state-of-the-art AI model can cost hundreds of millions of dollars. This price tag is prohibitive for most nations. Maintaining sovereign AI infrastructure is often more expensive than relying on global cloud providers. And while some countries, like Japan, are pursuing hybrid models that combine local development with international partnerships, others risk creating 'AI islands' isolated from global innovation. Critics note Malaysia's sovereign AI delivers 2.3x slower performance than global counterparts despite heavy investment, highlighting viability concerns.
Ethically, government ownership of AI raises a host of thorny questions. On one hand, public control could ensure that AI serves the common good, free from the profit motives and opaque algorithms of private corporations. On the other hand, it raises the specter of state surveillance and censorship. China's Social Credit System, Hungary's illegal public monitoring of LGBTQ+ allies and the UAE's use of AI to monitor government communications are cautionary tales of how sovereign AI can be weaponized for social control. There are also concerns about bias: nationally curated datasets may reflect the biases of majority populations, leaving marginalized groups behind. In addition, these models may serve as tools for propaganda by current political parties -- similar to how Elon Musk has publicly declared his intent to influence Grok, his AI model.
The path forward is not clear-cut. Absolute AI sovereignty may be an illusion in an interconnected world, but so is complete dependence on foreign technology. Some countries are exploring regional coalitions, like ASEAN's shared AI cloud, or open-source collaborations that balance local needs with global innovation. France, for example, is focusing on sector-specific sovereignty in healthcare, while Indonesia is building on open-source frameworks to create models that are both locally relevant and globally compatible.
Ultimately, the quest for sovereign AI is about more than technology. It is a reflection of a world in flux, where nations are reasserting their identities and interests in the face of rapid change. The challenge is to strike a balance between autonomy and collaboration, innovation and control, national ambition and global responsibility. In the end, the most successful countries may be those that can navigate this delicate equilibrium, building AI systems that are both locally rooted and globally connected.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Korea Herald
3 hours ago
- Korea Herald
K-cigarettes go global: KT&G lights up overseas markets
KT&G's overseas cigarette sales outstrip domestic in Q1; market sees trend moving forward As beauty and food products lead the so-called K-frenzy, Korean cigarettes are becoming the next major export success, powered by KT&G, the country's largest tobacco company. In the first quarter of this year, the company's overseas cigarette sales reached 449.1 billion won ($327 million), surpassing domestic sales of 373.6 billion won for the first time — momentum that analysts expect to persist throughout the year. This quarter saw overseas cigarette sales rise 23 percent in volume and 54 percent in revenue from a year earlier, while domestic sales fell by 9.3 billion won. 'It underscores the shift toward an overseas-centered structure,' said an analyst at Kyobo Securities, noting that the overseas sales share in KT&G's tobacco division rose from 39.5 percent last year to 47.5 percent this quarter. KT&G's overseas cigarette sales rose from 1.01 trillion won in 2022 to 1.13 trillion won in 2023, then climbed 28 percent to 1.45 trillion won last year. According to financial information provider FN Guide, KT&G is forecast to post 6.34 trillion won in total sales for the full year, a 7.3 percent increase from last year, with operating profit rising nearly 10 percent to 1.31 trillion won. The achievement manifests CEO Bang Kyung-man's aggressive drive to build a fully localized global value chain, enhancing agility and profitability in local markets. 'With a spirit of challenge, KT&G will continue to expand its global direct business to enhance both profitability and corporate value,' Bang said. Backed by region-specific strategies and expanded direct sales channels, KT&G, which now exports to 135 countries, has positioned its ultra-slim cigarette brand, Esse, at the forefront of global markets. The brand has gained significant traction across Asia-Pacific, with Indonesia accounting for over 20 percent of KT&G's total overseas sales. There, KT&G has pursued a successful localization strategy, offering products like Esse Berry Pop to cater to Indonesian consumers' preference for clove-based cigarettes. In Mongolia, KT&G has held over 50 percent market share since 2023, with annual sales rising from 300 million sticks in 2011 to 2.35 billion last year. Starting in June, KT&G made inroads into India's tobacco market by signing a distribution deal with local firm Kedara Trading LLP to launch its premium cigarette lineup in major cities such as New Delhi and Mumbai. According to the company, India is expected to become a new growth engine thanks to its rapidly expanding middle class and increasing demand for premium foreign cigarettes. 'To strengthen our global business performance, we set up in-house independent units for the Asia-Pacific and Eurasia regions last year, establishing dedicated strategy and marketing teams within each to enhance direct regional operations,' said a KT&G official. Esse's popularity extends beyond Asia. In the first quarter, the United Arab Emirates was KT&G's largest export destination, with shipments more than doubling to over 3,000 metric tons. From there, products are reexported throughout the Middle East. In line with its expanding global footprint, KT&G is boosting its overseas production capacity. In April, it completed a new factory in Kazakhstan with an annual capacity of 4.5 billion sticks, and construction of a new plant in Indonesia is underway.


Korea Herald
7 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Lee urges citizens to dine out as part of efforts to boost domestic demand
President Lee Jae Myung said Saturday that he hopes citizens would join a move to dine out as part of efforts to boost domestic demand. On Friday, Lee had dinner at a restaurant in central Seoul with his staff in a way to promote dining out to help small-sized brick-and-mortar restaurants and small merchants, overcome a slump amid sluggish domestic demand. "I personally hope citizens would visit nearby restaurants to promote and cheer on their businesses ... which will in turn revive the local economy and become an impetus for a bright future of South Korea," Lee said in a social media post. Lee's remarks came as the country will begin distributing cash handouts to all citizens on July 21 as part of a government initiative aimed at stimulating domestic consumption. All South Korean citizens residing in the country will receive a one-time payment of 150,000 won, depending on their income levels. Lee earlier instructed senior aides to draw up measures to maximize the effects of cash handouts, which is a part of an extra budget as a stimulus package to boost private consumption. (Yonhap)


Korea Herald
8 hours ago
- Korea Herald
ASEAN, regional partners call for 'complete denuclearization' of Korean Peninsula
Southeast Asian countries and Indo-Pacific partners, including South Korea and the United States, have called for efforts to achieve the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula, a joint statement showed Saturday, as they concluded this week's multilateral gathering led by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The chair's statement from the ASEAN Regional Forum, released Friday, also underscored the need to resume dialogue among concerned parties for peace and stability, a call that comes at a time when South Korea is seeking to improve inter-Korean relations under the new government of President Lee Jae Myung. "The Meeting called for the full implementation of all relevant UNSC Resolutions and noted international efforts to bring about the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," the statement read. "The Meeting ... stressed the importance of resuming peaceful dialogue among all concerned parties in order to realize lasting peace and stability in a denuclearized Korean Peninsula," it said. The use of the word "complete" to describe the North's denuclearization contrasts with last year's statement that called for "complete, verifiable and irreversible" denuclearization -- language seen as carrying a stronger tone. The ARF statement released every year following the ASEAN meetings draws attention for how it reconciles the differing positions on key security issues among participating countries, which also include China, Russia and North Korea. The changes in the latest statement possibly suggest Seoul's softer approach in its inter-Korean policy. Lee has called for easing tensions between the two Koreas and pursuing dialogue with Pyongyang, while continuing to respond firmly to the North's nuclear and missile threats in coordination with the international community. First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo, who attended this week's ASEAN meetings as the top representative, highlighted these calls throughout the venue. North Korea has severed all communication with the South amid the stalled nuclear talks, which collapsed without a deal in Hanoi in 2019. The participating countries also again voiced "grave concern" over North Korea's increasing missile launches that destabilize the Korean Peninsula, urging Pyongyang to fully comply with all relevant U.N. Security Council resolutions. The ARF is an expanded security forum joined by the 10 ASEAN member states, the United States, China, Japan, the European Union and other countries in South Asia and the Pacific, as well as North Korea. However, North Korea did not attend this year's session, its first absence from the forum since joining the gathering in 2000. (Yonhap)