OpenAI has recently been strengthening support for South Korea.

OpenAI selected the Ministry of Science and ICT as a partner for its Government and Trusted Access (GTAC) programme. The Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) will handle working-level operations. GTAC participants will be given access to OpenAI’s latest cybersecurity model, GPT-5.5 Cyber. South Korea, along with Japan, is the first in Asia and, globally, the third after the United States and Canada.

Some observers say OpenAI’s moves are not unrelated to the presence of people directly or indirectly connected to South Korea in its decision-making line.

First, Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon (제이슨 권) is a Korean American. Starting with his visit to South Korea in February last year to announce cooperation with Kakao, he has come to South Korea in person at major milestones, including the May announcement that it would set up a Seoul office, June discussions of AI partnerships with local companies such as SKT and Krafton, the September launch event for OpenAI Korea and the May announcement this year of cybersecurity cooperation.

Regarding the launch of OpenAI Korea, Kwon also said, "Because my family story is deeply connected to Korea, it is especially meaningful to open an OpenAI office in Seoul."

OpenAI co-founder and President Greg Brockman (그렉 브록만) has a Korean wife, making him what is referred to as a "Korean son-in-law". He accompanied OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (샘 알트먼) on his first visit to South Korea in June 2023 and highlighted his ties to the country, saying he holds a black belt in taekwondo. Brockman is a figure who served as the early chair of OpenAI’s board and is regarded as the company’s No. 2. He previously resigned in protest during the 2023 incident inside OpenAI involving Altman’s ouster. He later returned to OpenAI management with Altman and is serving as president.

OpenAI Korea also in comparison with 경경쟁외 also in building a domestic external cooperation organisation

Policy chief Ko Gi-seok (고기석) is described as a regulatory response expert who has worked across the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the Prime Minister, Cheong Wa Dae and the National Assembly Budget Office, among others. Most recently, he served as head of policy and public affairs at Airbnb Korea.

Head of communications Eum Seong-won (음성원), an executive who previously worked as a reporter, led communications for Northeast Asia including South Korea at Airbnb. He is also evaluated as having extensive policy networks including with the Seoul city government.

Rival Anthropic recently appointed former Snowflake Korea head Choi Gi-young (최기영) as its country manager, but has not yet put a public affairs officer in place.

At xAI led by Elon Musk, X Korea public affairs chief Kim Ga-yeon (김가연) also covers xAI. At Google Korea, Vice President Hwang Seong-hye (황성혜), formerly of Johnson & Johnson Korea, leads its public policy and external cooperation office.

OpenAI says it views the South Korean market as important from the perspective of the AI ecosystem value chain.

An OpenAI official said, "OpenAI’s South Korea business should be seen broadly from an AI ecosystem perspective. With a tight supply chain built, including the Stargate project, it is more than simple cooperation." The official added, "We view South Korea as a top-priority partner for realising OpenAI’s vision of benefiting humanity through artificial general intelligence (AGI)."