Presidential Chief of Staff for Policy Kim Yong-beom answers a question from President Lee Jae Myung during a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday. Yonhap

Artificial intelligence (AI) should be treated as a basic right rather than a luxury, the top presidential aide said Tuesday, as the government unveiled plans to expand public access to AI through free access to essential services while strengthening Korea’s domestic AI ecosystem.

Presidential Chief of Staff for Policy Kim Yong-beom made the remarks as the Ministry of Science and ICT fleshed out details of its “AI for Everyone” initiative, which aims to provide all citizens with free access to essential AI services built primarily on Korean-developed models.

Kim argued that access to AI will increasingly determine opportunities for education, work and economic growth, making it a matter of public policy rather than simply technological advancement.

“Access to AI should now be regarded as a basic right,” Kim wrote in a Facebook post titled, “In the AI era, the state organizes the market.

“As AI becomes a force that determines people’s opportunities and growth, it is the state’s responsibility to ensure that no citizen is left standing outside that door,” he said.

Kim said the government’s role is not to replace private companies in developing AI but to remove barriers preventing wider adoption.

“The state should not replace the market. It should simply help the market overcome barriers it cannot cross on its own, then step back,” he said. “Developing, selling and using AI should remain the market’s job, while the state brings together the conditions needed to unlock the market.”

He described the concept as an “AI basic society,” arguing that guaranteeing every citizen a minimum level of computing access is different from cash-based welfare.

“If cash helps people consume, computing helps them produce,” Kim said. “It is less like giving someone a fish or teaching them how to fish than putting a fishing rod into everyone’s hands.”

Kim pointed to the government’s “AI for Everyone” project as a practical example of that philosophy.

The initiative combines two goals: providing free access to Korean AI services to encourage wider domestic adoption, and deploying AI agents capable of helping citizens navigate and apply for public services while opening government data for private-sector innovation.

Earlier Tuesday, the science ministry outlined how the project will be rolled out.

This year, the government plans to launch a general-purpose AI chatbot and public-service AI agents based on Korean models. Beginning in 2027, it aims to expand the system into personalized AI assistants capable of supporting tasks such as financial management, learning and retirement planning.

Under the plan, companies selected for the program will receive government support, including access to graphics processing units, but will be required to keep essential AI functions free even after the government-funded computing resources are exhausted.

Companies will instead be allowed to generate revenue through premium features and specialized services.

“The philosophy behind ‘AI for Everyone’ is that essential AI services should be available to everyone easily and without financial burden,” Gong Jin-ho, director of AI policy planning at the science ministry, said during a project briefing.

He added that the principle of free access would remain in place even as services become more sophisticated.

The ministry also confirmed that the initiative will prioritize Korean-developed AI models.

Foreign models will be permitted only when domestic technology cannot adequately perform specific functions, aligning the project with the government’s broader effort to foster homegrown foundation AI models while expanding AI use across society.