Kim Sang-wook's 'Four-Zero Election' and Ulsan's AX Experiment

Kim Sang-wook, the Democratic Party's candidate for Ulsan mayor, challenged conventional election tactics by declaring a 'four-zero election' – one without money, slander, organization, or mobilization – for the June 3 local elections.

Candidate Kim set a goal to transform the manufacturing city of Ulsan into a leader in the artificial intelligence-driven transformation, or 'AX (AI Transformation),' to restructure its industrial base. He raised concerns about the crisis in the automotive industry, arguing that Ulsan should become a testing site to lead the AX shift in preparation for a future where simple assembly processes are replaced by robots. He also stated that the benefits of AI and robot-led transformation should be returned to frontline workers and citizens, not concentrated solely in capital. To achieve this, he pledged to push for a labor-centric AX transition in close cooperation with industrial unions.

Candidate Kim pointed to the structural failures of Ulsan's private bus system and pledged to introduce an 'Ulsan-type bus quasi-public system.'

He also stated that various alternatives, including water supply from the Unmun Dam, are being considered to address water shortages resulting from the preservation of the Bangudae Petroglyphs.