Landing in Seoul, I passed an unmanned immigration gate that matched my face to my passport, rode a 5G‑enabled subway, and watched a wheel‑mounted robot hand over dinner at a crosswalk. LED screens streamed K‑pop birthday ads while commuters stared at AI‑powered phones. A bus stop kiosk now offers multilingual answers, part of the district’s upcoming “AI bus stop” pilot.

The government has framed AI as the engine of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, pouring tax credits and low‑interest loans into Samsung and SK Hynix, each now valued above $1 trillion. The 2024 AI Basic Act provides light‑touch regulation, while the Presidential Council on National AI Strategy funds sovereign foundation models. Stanford’s 2026 AI Index ranks South Korea third worldwide for notable AI models.

Despite optimism, 64% of citizens fear job loss and 46% of twenty‑somethings use chatbots for fortune‑telling, reflecting anxiety about automation. Hyundai’s rollout of Atlas humanoid robots sparked a union protest demanding labor agreements before any robot enters the factory. The same public enthusiasm coexists with calls for deeper ethical review and broader societal assessment of AI’s impact.