Ha Jeong-woo Resurfaces in Gupo Market Following Election Defeat
Following his loss in the recent Busan Buk-gap district by-election, Ha Jeong-woo, former Senior Secretary for AI Future Planning at the Blue House, has resumed his public activities. He was observed engaging with citizens in the Gupo Market area.
Reflections on Public Service and Future Aspirations
In a social media post on June 11th, Ha stated, “My steps naturally lead me back to the market.” He described his experience walking through the bustling market, listening to the sounds of morning routines and the calls of vendors, while interacting with the public. He noted that the sentiments and concerns of constituents, which could not be fully captured by vote counts, remain deeply felt in the community.
Ha emphasized his continued commitment to the residents of Buk-gu, stating, “I continue to walk through these streets, carrying a bag of support for the people who welcome me as their son.””
Election Outcome and Lessons Learned
In the election, Ha, representing the Democratic Party, narrowly lost to Han Dong-hoon by a margin of 1,792 votes, or 1.7 percentage points. Han secured 35,056 votes (42.96%), while Ha received 33,664 votes (41.26%).
Speaking at an election aftermath committee meeting on June 9th, Ha reflected on his political journey, admitting to numerous past failures. He stated, “I don’t regret losing this election. I have learned from these failures and used them as stepping stones to reach this point.” He also expressed a forward-looking perspective, noting, “There are less than two years until the next general election. As long as we don’t falter, we will be fine.””
Focus on AI Development and National Sovereignty
Looking ahead, Ha announced plans to give a lecture titled “AI Transformation (AX)” at Jeju Halla University on June 16th. He expressed his intention to leverage his experience and expertise to assist more local governments in actively adopting and pursuing AX initiatives.
On June 13th, Ha commented on the U.S. government’s decision to restrict foreign access to leading AI models from Anthropic, such as ‘Firework5’ and ‘Mythos5’. He recalled predicting in late 2020, around the release of GPT-3, that leading AI would eventually face export controls.
“This is what happens when AI capabilities determine a nation’s competitiveness, and we reach a point of AI technological dependence,” he remarked. While acknowledging that such restrictions might be lifted after a certain period, Ha stressed the significance of the ongoing trend of such actions.
He concluded by emphasizing the importance of a nation’s independent AI capabilities, stating, “Therefore, a nation’s own AI capacity, or sovereign AI, is crucial. While collaborating globally, we must always possess independent capabilities when needed.””
