SKT, Kakao, and KT Selected as Final Operators for 'Everyone's AI' Project
The Ministry of Science and ICT has finally selected the SKT, Kakao, and KT consortia as the business operators for the 'Everyone's AI' project.
The review of the six participating consortia was conducted in two stages. The written evaluation assessed technical suitability—such as AI model and service competitiveness as well as GPU utilization and infrastructure plans—to determine pass/fail status. The presentation evaluation, which included prototype video demonstrations, comprehensively assessed service convenience and user acquisition strategies, quality and safety assurance plans, and ecosystem contribution plans.
Business support will follow. The Ministry of Science and ICT will support the three selected operators this year with 512 high-performance GPU B200 units. Starting in 2027, government budgets are expected to cover the costs required for providing services to the entire nation.
This is AI integrated into daily life through phones, messengers, and portals. The SK Telecom consortium plans to develop an "actionable AI" service that handles everything from planning and execution to result confirmation with a single request. The design aims to allow usage via apps and web as well as phone and text messages, enabling the elderly and digitally vulnerable who are unfamiliar with smartphone apps to use it without a separate installation. They will implement an agent function that automatically dials numbers found through search to contact stores and government offices that lack official APIs, and will showcase specialized services in daily life areas such as health and finance while expanding agent services through partnerships with various startups beyond consortium members.
The Kakao consortium uses the messenger the public uses daily as the starting point for service usage. It will provide a service that integrates general-purpose chatbots and AI agents, and together with LG Uplus, will launch a "light" version of a universal phone AI service within the year before gradually expanding it. By linking PlayMCP with an AI agent marketplace, it supports AI companies in directly creating, testing, and distributing specialized agents, while also providing lifecycle-specific services like senior care and tax services.
The KT consortium aims to provide an AI service that seamlessly supports information search, comparison and judgment, execution of public and specialized services, and management within a single conversational flow. In addition to the user journeys for search, news, and content consumption on the Daum portal and app, AI entry points will be placed in partner channels like Danawa, Musinsa, and Zigbang to connect search demand to chatbots. By linking KT's communication channels and media like IPTV with 'Everyone's AI,' users will be able to initiate AI from any daily channel, with specialized services in life-oriented fields like education and real estate also supported.
The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to sign agreements with the three operators in September and, following beta service, officially launch 'Everyone's AI' within the year. To this end, it will immediately form a practical working group with the selected operators and proceed with consultations with relevant ministries for public data linkage.
