# South Korea launches 'AI for All': free, unlimited chatbot for all 52 million citizens

> South Korea wants to hand every one of its roughly 52 million citizens a free, unlimited AI chatbot, and it is putting real money and hardware behind the promise. The Ministry of Science and ICT opened competitive bidding on July 13 for a program it calls AI for All, with applications closing August 11. Two or three private operators will be selected to run the service, and the government will supply up to 512 Nvidia B200 GPUs to power it. The condition that makes this more than a giveaway is a sovereignty requirement, that at least half of each system must run on certified domestic Korean models. That pushes local labs to build competitive alternatives rather than simply wrapping foreign systems. A public beta is planned for late September 2026, with a full launch before year end and free access promised through 2030. Seoul is also signaling where this could lead, floating future welfare agents that would help citizens navigate government services. It is one of the boldest attempts yet to treat conversational AI as public infrastructure rather than a private subscription, and a test of whether a national model strategy can hold its own.

_Section: [Daily AI Updates](https://www.wortins.com/daily-ai) · Source: Digital Trends · Published Thursday, July 23, 2026_

## Wortins' read

South Korea wants to hand every one of its roughly 52 million citizens a free, unlimited AI chatbot, and it is putting real money and hardware behind the promise. The Ministry of Science and ICT opened competitive bidding on July 13 for a program it calls AI for All, with applications closing August 11. Two or three private operators will be selected to run the service, and the government will supply up to 512 Nvidia B200 GPUs to power it. The condition that makes this more than a giveaway is a sovereignty requirement, that at least half of each system must run on certified domestic Korean models. That pushes local labs to build competitive alternatives rather than simply wrapping foreign systems. A public beta is planned for late September 2026, with a full launch before year end and free access promised through 2030. Seoul is also signaling where this could lead, floating future welfare agents that would help citizens navigate government services. It is one of the boldest attempts yet to treat conversational AI as public infrastructure rather than a private subscription, and a test of whether a national model strategy can hold its own.

## Source

[Read the full story at Digital Trends](https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/south-korea-wants-to-give-every-citizen-free-unlimited-access-to-its-own-ai-chatbot/)

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