Seoul, June 17 (AHN) South Korea became the fourth country to forge a security partnership in artificial intelligence (AI) with OpenAI, the developer behind ChatGPT, according to the science ministry on Wednesday.

Under a memorandum of understanding, South Korea's AI safety institute (AISI) and OpenAI will work together to prepare a global framework to evaluate AI security, the Ministry of Science and ICT said.

The two sides will also exchange technical information to develop an AI safety assessment framework that reflects the Korean language and the country's social context, the ministry added, reports Yonhap news agency.

OpenAI had previously signed agreements with AI security labs in the United States, the U.K. and Japan.

The latest agreement is expected to strengthen South Korea's position in the global cooperation network aimed at verifying risks of advanced AI and establishing risk assessment standards, the science ministry said.

AISI and OpenAI plan to hold a working-level meeting to finalise details on their cooperation.

Earlier, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's visit to South Korea was postponed due to personal reasons, the artificial intelligence (AI) research organisation and industry sources said.

Altman was originally scheduled to arrive in South Korea this month for a two-day trip that included meetings with major technology companies, including Samsung Electronics Co., to discuss cooperation in AI.

During the visit, Altman was also expected to meet executives from portal operator Naver Corp. and mobile platform operator Kakao Corp.

"South Korea is a very important country and a strategic partner for OpenAI," the company said in a statement. "Our ongoing collaborations with domestic partners will continue as planned."

OpenAI added that it hopes Altman will be able to visit South Korea again in the near future and meet local partners in person.

The company did not disclose further details regarding the reason for the postponement or a revised schedule for Altman's visit.

—AHN

na/