Original Source
AI Adoption Gap Between Large and Small Businesses Widens 10-Fold in 2 Years, Policy Shift Advocated
Growing Disparity in AI Adoption Between Large and Small Businesses
The Science and Technology Policy Institute (STEPI) recently published 'Science and Technology Policy Brief No. 59,' revealing that the artificial intelligence (AI) adoption gap between large and small businesses in South Korea has expanded nearly 10-fold in just two years. The AI adoption disparity, which was 4.7 percentage points in 2023, is projected to reach 45.7 percentage points by 2025. Notably, 89.3% of small and medium-sized service enterprises lack dedicated personnel or organizations for digital transformation, and 62.2% reported no need for digital technology due to their business characteristics, indicating a widespread lack of perceived necessity for AI adoption.
Advocating for a Policy Paradigm Shift and Solutions
STEPI warns that this polarization could lead to structural risks, including data monopolization and widening productivity gaps. The current government support, designed with a supplier- and adoption-centric approach, makes it difficult for less capable companies to access, perpetuating a vicious cycle of increasing disparities. As a solution, STEPI proposes shifting the support system from focusing on equipment purchases to prioritizing utilization and performance. Other recommendations include establishing regional joint talent pools, industry-specific job retraining systems, enhancing incentives for large corporations to share data and testbeds, and providing low-cost digital transformation packages and national shared secure clouds for different sectors.
*Source: 동아사이언스 (2026-04-06)*
