KT Pitches Korea-Specific AI as Alternative to Global Large Language Models (Image provided by KT)
SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — KT Corp. on Monday unveiled SOTA K built on GPT-4o, a large language model developed in collaboration with Microsoft that the company says is optimized for Korean language and culture.
The release marks the first time a Korean telecom has rolled out an AI system designed to overcome the shortcomings of global models, which have often struggled with Korean grammar, honorifics, dialects and culturally specific contexts. KT said it trained the system on high-quality domestic datasets and adapted OpenAI’s GPT-4o for Korean society.
SOTA K is built on four principles KT described as essential for “Korean AI”: protection of data sovereignty, understanding of Korean culture, user choice of models and safe, responsible deployment. The model, according to KT, can not only handle nuances of honorific speech but also generate and interpret technical terminology used in law, finance and history.
In internal benchmarks designed to measure Korean-specific performance, KT said SOTA K outperformed GPT-4o in comprehension, reasoning, cultural awareness and specialized knowledge. The company highlighted particularly strong results in civil service and naturalization exam simulations, which require advanced command of Korean history and law.
The model has already been tested in real-world settings with partners including Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance, EBS, Yonsei Medical Center and Korea Electric Power Corp. KT plans to first apply SOTA K across its consumer businesses, then extend services to partners after stability checks.
“SOTA K represents a breakthrough that combines global-level AI technology with deep Korean contextualization,” said Yoon Kyung-ah, head of KT’s Agentic AI Lab. “The expertise accumulated with Microsoft will also serve as a foundation for KT’s future AI developments.”
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
