Legal Challenges Following the Enactment of Korea’s Basic Act on Artificial Intelligence

The “Basic Act on the Promotion of Foundations for Development and Trust for Artificial Intelligence” (hereinafter referred to as the “Basic Act on Artificial Intelligence”), enacted on January 21, 2025, marks South Korea as the second country in the world, following the European Union, to establish a comprehensive legal framework for artificial intelligence. This legislation is significant in that it provides a legal foundation for both the advancement of AI technology and its ethical utilization. However, for the Basic Act on Artificial Intelligence to be truly effective and responsive to the rapidly evolving technological landscape and its diverse social impacts, more sophisticated and balanced legal refinements are required. First, a differentiated regulatory system based on the risk level of AI systems must be established. By harmoniously combining the EU’s systematic risk classification and comprehensive regulatory approach with the United States’ flexible legal application, Korea should build a balanced regulatory framework that simultaneously fosters technological innovation, ensures ethical responsibility, and protects citizens’ rights. Second, transparency and explainability of AI must be enhanced. This includes clearly stipulating concrete methods for explaining AI decision-making processes and outcomes, procedures for objections, obligations for detailed technical documentation and preservation, and requirements for logging and record-keeping, thereby securing public trust in AI. Third, the protection of ethics and human rights in AI must be strengthened. This can be achieved by mandating impact assessments for high-impact AI, introducing mechanisms to prevent discrimination by AI systems, and ensuring meaningful human intervention. Fourth, to balance AI industry development with regulation, Korea should consider adopting a risk-based approach, flexible application of existing legal systems, building innovation-supporting infrastructure, strengthening international cooperation, and introducing AI-specific regulatory sandboxes. Through such improvements, the Basic Act on Artificial Intelligence can achieve a balanced realization of technological innovation, ethical use of AI, and protection of citizens’ rights. It is essential that these elements are thoroughly reflected in the forthcoming enforcement decrees, and that continuous monitoring and improvement are pursued to enhance the effectiveness of AI governance in Korea.