Local governments spend $276,000 on AI subscriptions

By Kim Hyun-bin

Local governments across Korea have spent nearly 400 million won ($276,000) over the past year subscribing to generative artificial intelligence (AI) programs such as ChatGPT for official purposes, according to government data released Sunday.

A report compiled by Rep. Yang Bu-nam of the Democratic Party of Korea, a member of the National Assembly’s Public Administration and Security Committee, found that 17 metropolitan and provincial governments spent a total of 391.7 million won on AI subscription services between January 2023 and January 2024.

Jeju Province led in spending with approximately 68.7 million won, followed by Seoul (56.3 million won), Gyeonggi Province (46.7 million won), South Jeolla Province (44.5 million won) and South Chungcheong Province (43.1 million won).

The total number of local government employees using generative AI services reached 3,687, excluding Gyeonggi Province, which said it could not determine an exact figure. South Chungcheong had the highest number of users at 1,274, followed by Gangwon Province (858), Seoul (440) and Daejeon (275).

ChatGPT, the conversational AI service developed by U.S.-based OpenAI, was the most widely subscribed AI tool, with all 17 local governments using the program. Five local governments also subscribed to Claude, an AI model developed by U.S. startup Anthropic, and Midjourney, an AI-powered image generation tool.

Additionally, four local governments used Gamma, an AI service that assists in creating presentations and websites. Other AI services used included Suno, a music production tool; Perplexity, an AI-based search engine; Naver Clova Dubbing, a text-to-speech synthesis tool; and Bluedot, a video compression service.

Seoul and Gyeonggi Province had the highest number of AI subscriptions, with each using 10 different AI programs.

Despite the growing adoption of AI, security concerns remain. The report noted that no local government had subscribed to DeepSeek, a Chinese generative AI service, which was previously mostly blocked by the central government due to data security concerns.

“Generative AI can significantly improve work efficiency, but we need safeguards to prevent its misuse for non-official purposes,” Rep. Yang said. “Recent controversies surrounding DeepSeek highlight the importance of stringent security measures to protect public documents and personal data.”

The increasing use of AI in government work has sparked debates over security, efficiency and cost-effectiveness, as Korea continues to integrate advanced technologies into public administration.