Dongwon Group Honorary Chairman Kim Jae-chul will donate 50 billion won in private funds to KAIST to foster talent in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector in Korea.
On Dec. 16, Kim announced that he would donate 50 billion won in private funds according to the annual plan for the next 10 years at a donation ceremony held at the of Jeong Geun-mo conference hall at KAIST in Daejeon.
The signing ceremony was attended by KAIST President Shin Sung-chul and other KAIST officials, Kim Nam-koo, chairman of Korea Investment Holdings, and Kim Nam-jung, vice chairman of Dongwon Group.
The event was held to minimize the number of attendees to prevent the spread of COVID-19, while the safety management officer observed the social distance-keeping guidelines by checking the heating and disinfection status of the visitors and maintaining a distance of more than 2 meters when moving.
The donation was made in accordance with Honorary Chairman Kim's belief that fostering talent in the AI field is more urgent than anything else in order for South Korea to take the lead in the AI sector and become an advanced country in the era of the fourth industrial revolution.
"The AI wave will lead to a big change in our lives beyond the eras of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd industrial revolution," Honorary Chairman Kim said at the signing ceremony. "Today's event will be a ceremony for Korea to move toward an advanced AI country."
"If Korea takes another big leap forward with the AI revolution, strengthen the foundation of the country, and leads the AI era, it will shine in world history," Honorary Chairman Kim said. "I hope KAIST will carry out its historical task of pioneering AI-developed countries by fostering AI talent."
KAIST President Shin Sung-chul said, "We pay tribute to Kim's decision to develop science and technology in Korea. We will do our best to make KAIST a global hub for AI talent development and research based on Kim's contribution."
