Science ministry asks public to name 'AI for Everyone' service

The science ministry said it will hold a public contest to create the brand name and slogan for "AI for Everyone," its project to make services built on Korean artificial intelligence models easy and affordable for anyone to use.

The contest runs from Oct. 26 to Nov. 6. Entrants must submit a brand name of no more than five characters together with a slogan of no more than 20 characters, along with a description of up to 300 characters explaining the meaning and intent of their proposal. Each person may enter one proposal.

Submissions will be judged on policy fit, usability and scalability, originality, and clarity and completeness. The top prize is 2 million won ($1,510), and the total prize pool for six outstanding works is 5.5 million won ($4,153). Ten other valid entrants, excluding the winners, will be selected by lottery to receive vouchers worth 50,000 won ($38) each.

The ministry said the contest is meant to spread word of the project ahead of its launch and build public interest and participation before the service goes live. The selected name and slogan will be used on the service's screens and in promotional materials after consultation with the companies taking part.

AI for Everyone is intended to let the public use services based on Korean AI models without cost or difficulty. The ministry picked three consortiums of SK Telecom, Kakao and KT as operators on Aug. 28 and is now running a beta service for people involved in the project, with a full launch planned for this year.

"Public interest and participation are more important than anything else for the success of AI for Everyone," said Um Yeol, head of the ministry's AI policy office. "We will actively reflect the public's suggestions and demands as we prepare and run the service, and build a convenient, high-quality service together with the people."