Science ministry opens public contest to name and slogan 'AI for All'

South Korea's science ministry said Monday it will take public submissions for the brand name and slogan of its "AI for All" program, its push to make services built on Korean AI models easy for anyone to use, with the contest running from Oct. 26 to Nov. 6.

The Ministry of Science and ICT said entrants submit a policy brand name of five characters or fewer together with a slogan of no more than 20 characters, plus a short written explanation of up to 300 characters setting out the meaning and intent behind their proposal. Any South Korean national may enter, one submission per person, through an online form.

The ministry picked three consortiums as operators on Aug. 28 — led by SK Telecom, Kakao and KT — and a beta service for people involved in the industry is now running ahead of a formal launch within the year.

The three operators are taking different approaches. SK Telecom is building an executable AI that can also work through phone calls and text messages, Kakao is integrating chatbots and agents with KakaoTalk as the entry point, and KT is linking an integrated AI to everyday channels such as search, news and its IPTV service.

The ministry is awarding six prizes in total, with a top prize of 2 million won ($1,510) among a combined purse of 5.5 million won ($4,153). Separately from the prizes, 10 valid entrants who do not win will be drawn to receive gift certificates worth 50,000 won ($38) each, the ministry said. Winners will be announced on Nov. 16.

Entries will be scored on policy fit, originality, and how well the branding communicates and holds together. Once a name and slogan are chosen, they will be applied to the service's screens and to external promotional materials after consultation with the participating companies.

"Public interest and participation are more important than anything for the success of 'AI for All'," said Eom Yeol, the ministry's artificial intelligence policy director. "We will actively reflect people's proposals and requests in the course of preparing and running the service and build a convenient, high-quality service together with the public."