The National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA) and the Korea Association for ICT Promotion (KAIT) have announced the launch of the 1st AI Semiconductor Technology Talent Contest. This initiative aims to address the pressing manpower shortage in South Korea's rapidly growing AI semiconductor industry. With support from the Ministry of Science and ICT, the contest seeks to discover and recruit talented software (SW) engineers to major AI semiconductor companies in Korea.
Despite the significant growth of South Korea's AI semiconductor sector, companies have been facing substantial challenges in securing the necessary workforce for technological innovation and market competitiveness. The competition intends to alleviate this issue by fostering key human resources that can contribute to the industry's development. The South Korea Semiconductor Engineering Association and the South Korea AI Semiconductor Collaboration Forum will form a jury to evaluate and support participating talent.
The contest is open to anyone with Korean nationality who is interested in the AI semiconductor industry. It will feature four categories: "Mobile Edge," "Server," "Semiconductor Design," and "sLLM·sLM." Applications for the competition began on August 12, and teams will be selected through an initial document screening. The final presentation evaluation will take place in December, culminating in an awards ceremony where the first winner will be announced.
Eleven South Korean AI semiconductor companies, including Nextchip, DEEPX, Rebelion, Mangoboost, SAPEON, OPENEDGES Technology, UXfactory, Telechips, FuriosaAI, Future Design System, and HYPER ACCEL, will participate in the competition. These companies will present real-world problems to participants, offering them hands-on experience in actual industrial settings. Participants must plan and implement solutions to these challenges, and the final presentation will assess their planning and implementation capabilities.
The competition will span four months, ending with an awards ceremony in December. Prizes totaling 160 million won will be distributed among nine winning teams. The first-place team will receive 40 million won, four second-place teams will receive 20 million won each, and four third-place teams will receive 10 million won each.
Regardless of the competition outcome, participants will have employment opportunities with the ten participating companies. Additional support programs include online briefing sessions on August 19, mentoring with participating companies from September to December, and professional employment consulting in December.
This contest marks a significant step in addressing the talent gap in South Korea's AI semiconductor industry, aiming to ensure the sector's sustained growth and global competitiveness.
