[Edaily Reporter Han Kwangbeom ] KTCorporation(030200)KT has joined forces with the National Information Society Agency (NIA) to fully expand the artificial intelligence (AI) education and certification capabilities it has accumulated domestically to the global market.

KTCorporation announced on the 22nd that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NIA to support AI-based inclusive digital transformation and strengthen global capabilities.

Since 2024, NIA has been implementing and operating KTCorporation’s AI proficiency test, AICE (AI Certificate for Everyone), to enhance the AI capabilities of its employees. Building on this agreement, the two organizations plan to extend their domestic collaboration overseas and integrate AICE into global cooperation projects, such as the Information Access Centers (IACs) in developing countries operated by NIA and the World Friends Korea (WFK) IT Volunteer Corps.

IACs are digital education and application spaces established at local public institutions, government ministries, and national universities in developing countries to enable citizens to directly experience and learn about new digital technologies. Beginning with Cambodia in 2002, 64 centers have been established in 48 countries to date. The WFK IT Volunteer Corps is a program composed of students aged 19 and older who carry out IT education and digital capacity-building activities overseas; since its launch in 2001, a total of 9,594 volunteers have been dispatched to 78 countries.

Through this agreement, the two organizations have agreed to jointly pursue the following: △ strengthening global digital capabilities through cooperation on talent development and certification systems in the fields of AI and digital technology; △ international cooperation linking the IAC and the IT Volunteer Corps; and △ the exchange of experts in AI and digital fields and the expansion of educational programs.

In the second half of this year, pilot AICE Basic training and exams will be conducted at Information Access Centers in three countries: Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Georgia. Starting in Vietnam in November, followed by Sri Lanka and Georgia in December, video-on-demand (VOD)-based online training will be provided to 100 participants per country. Of these, 20 participants from each country will undergo a three-day in-person training session followed by the AICE Basic exam.

AICE Basic is a foundational AI competency certification exam that even non-majors can take without feeling overwhelmed; it assesses data analysis skills and the basic principles and practical application of AI without requiring coding. The training consists of pre-course VOD learning and a hands-on program using AIDU, the AICE education and practice platform, with KTCorporation Digital Talent Scholarship recipients serving as local instructors to support the trainees.

Next year, the two organizations plan to further expand the scope of their collaboration by linking NIA’s WFK IT Volunteer Corps with KTCorporation’s AICE program to carry out AICE-based AI educational volunteer activities in overseas locations. The two institutions intend to continue refining the details of their cooperation, including target countries, the scale of training, and operational methods.

Lee Jeong-woo, Executive Vice President in charge of ESG at KTCorporation, stated, “This is highly significant as it marks the first time we are applying the AI education and certification experience we have accumulated domestically to overseas settings,” adding, “Together with NIA, we will support young people in developing countries in building their AI capabilities and steadily expand the scope of our cooperation.”