Salesforce announced on the 11th that South Korea ranked in the upper tier (overall 6th) among 16 countries in its 'Global AI Readiness Index'. This index evaluates the level of readiness for AI adoption and utilization by country based on five factors: regulatory framework, AI diffusion and adoption, innovation ecosystem, investment environment, and human capital and technology.

According to the announcement, the United States, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Germany are leading AI innovation based on technological innovation in the private ecosystem, a solid investment foundation, and AI diffusion across various industries. Particularly, AI adoption in the public sector and talent retraining systems were evaluated as major strengths of these countries.

South Korea, Japan, Australia, France, and Saudi Arabia showed growth in key areas, including public services, but were noted to require further development in capital mobilization and technology development. Mexico, Indonesia, Brazil, and Argentina have made progress in AI strategy but were seen as lagging in infrastructure, funding, and workforce readiness. Italy, Brazil, and Argentina were assessed to have opportunities to bridge the gap by converting technological improvements and policies into investments and infrastructure.

South Korea recorded 9.0 points (average 8.6 points) in the regulatory framework, demonstrating a strong institutional foundation. AI diffusion and adoption scored 6.7 points (average 5.8 points), surpassing the average by successfully integrating AI into manufacturing, logistics, and smart cities. Human capital and technology scored 5.1 points (average 4.5 points), standing out in public-private cooperation and use case deployment alongside France and Saudi Arabia. South Korea, along with Singapore and France, was interpreted as focusing on technology diffusion by making AI a core element of the national digital transformation strategy.

On the other hand, the innovation ecosystem scored 1.8 points (average 1.7 points), and the investment environment scored 0.8 points (average 1.4 points), both below average. South Korea was noted to have a strong research infrastructure and a growing startup ecosystem but was seen as highly dependent on large platforms for foundation models and computing resources. In the investment environment, while public funding support and private interest have increased in fintech, logistics, and e-government platforms, accessibility to growth-stage capital, underdeveloped capital markets, and a fragmented investor network were identified as weaknesses.

The survey results indicated that countries worldwide are at different stages of AI diffusion but show similar levels of progress and potential. The full survey results are available for public viewing on the Salesforce Korea website.

Son Bu-han, CEO of Salesforce Korea, stated, “The adoption of AI agents is similar to a car race. Some countries are already competing at the forefront, but many are in the stage of preparing the foundation for engine operation. Salesforce will strengthen its role as a trusted partner to help domestic companies achieve AI-based productivity innovation and business value creation.”

Salesforce supports the safe and efficient adoption of AI through its AI agent platform 'Agentforce', including data cloud services. Recently, it has been actively expanding educational programs such as hands-on workshops, hackathons, and community activities for sharing innovation cases.

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