LG AI Research, SK Telecom, Upstage survive next cut in national AI model project

The Korean government has narrowed its state-backed AI initiative to three teams, reducing the initial pool of five contenders. LG AI Research, SK Telecom, and Upstage emerged victorious after an evaluation of the four teams competing for the AI model project. Motif Technologies, despite its strong performance on global benchmarks, was eliminated from consideration.

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced the decision on Tuesday, noting that the three teams advanced based on benchmark performance, expert reviews, and user experience. The project, launched last year, aimed to create domestic AI models capable of competing with leading models from the United States and China. Initially, five teams were selected, but Naver Cloud and NC AI were eliminated in the first evaluation phase.

Motif Technologies joined the competition through an additional selection process to replace the eliminated teams. The four teams submitted their latest models for the second-round assessment, with LG AI Research's K-EXAONE 2.0, SK Telecom's A.X K2, Upstage's Solar Open2, and Motif's Motif 3 being the models submitted. The ministry highlighted that all four teams had developed internationally competitive AI models.