South Korea's Minister of Science and ICT, Bae Kyung-hoon, stated on Monday that advanced artificial intelligence models could evolve into geopolitical strategic assets comparable to nuclear weapons, and reaffirmed that the country must independently develop its own domestic cutting-edge AI models.

Just one month ago, the U.S. government, citing security concerns, abruptly blocked overseas users from accessing Anthropic's two leading models, Fable and Mythos.

Coinciding with his one-year anniversary in the ministerial role, Bae Kyung-hoon pointed out at a relevant meeting: "Advanced-level AI models are increasingly taking on strategic attributes akin to nuclear weapons, and the desire of some nations to control such top-tier AI systems will only intensify."

He added: "We are formulating a specialized plan and actively coordinating among various relevant departments within the government. South Korea must rise to the challenge and independently develop advanced AI models to build globally competitive artificial intelligence capabilities."

The minister also mentioned that South Korea aims to establish full-stack AI supply capabilities, exporting a complete artificial intelligence technology system overseas.