South Korea selects SK Telecom, Kakao, KT to deliver free nationwide AI services

South Korea has selected consortia led by SK Telecom, Kakao, and KT Corporation to deliver its state-led "AI for All" initiative, treating generative AI as a public utility. The program aims to provide free, unlimited AI access to all 52 million citizens, bridging a domestic adoption gap that leaves 29 million residents untouched by AI. To protect technological sovereignty, the government mandates that 80% of queries run on domestic models. Beta testing begins in September 2026, with a full rollout by December 2026.

AI for All program selection

• ▪The Ministry of Science and ICT selected the three winning consortia from a pool of six bidders that submitted proposals by the August 11, 2026 deadline.
• ▪South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT selected consortia led by SK Telecom, Kakao, and KT Corporation for its "AI for Everyone" project.

Platform integration strategies

• ▪SK Telecom plans to distribute its national AI service through its existing A. assistant application, leveraging its 22.5 million mobile subscriber lines.
• ▪Kakao plans to use its KakaoTalk messaging application as the primary gateway to deliver its general-purpose chatbot and specialized transaction agents.
• ▪KT Corporation plans to embed domestic AI models directly into eight existing consumer-facing platforms, including Musinsa, Qanda, Daum, and Zigbang.

AI adoption gap reduction

• ▪Science Minister Bae Kyung-hoon stated that ensuring AI access for all citizens is urgent to prevent the AI divide from compounding into social and economic inequality.
• ▪South Korea's "AI for All" initiative aims to bridge the domestic AI adoption gap, where approximately 29 million residents remain untouched by generative AI.

Government infrastructure rollout timeline

• ▪The South Korean government will provide the three winning consortia with a combined 512 Nvidia B200 graphics processing units in 2026 to support initial compute.
• ▪The South Korean government plans to subsidize nationwide service-delivery costs starting in 2027, committing to keep the services free through 2028.
• ▪South Korea plans to begin beta testing the national AI services in September 2026, with full public rollouts scheduled by December 2026.

AI sovereignty goals

• ▪The program treats generative AI as a public utility, making South Korea the first G20 nation to offer all citizens free, unlimited AI access.
• ▪South Korea's "AI for All" program aims to establish AI sovereignty and avoid overreliance on generative AI models from the United States and China.

Domestic AI ecosystem strengthening

• ▪The program mandates that winning operators route at least 50% of user queries through their own certified Korean foundation models.
• ▪Winning operators must route at least 80% of total user queries through South Korean-built models to qualify for government subsidies.