South Korea’s labour minister wants tech firms to share AI windfalls South Korea’s labor minister, Kim Young-hoon, is urging major tech companies to share excess profits generated by the AI chip boom with their suppliers and employees. He believes this profit-sharing is crucial to prevent widening inequality, which could harm economic growth. While the minister is framing his proposal as a dialogue and not a mandate, it has drawn criticism from the conservative opposition for potentially interfering with free-market principles.

• South Korean Labour Minister Kim Young-hoon has asked large tech firms to share AI-driven chip cycle profits.
• The minister warns that record sector gains risk widening the gap between conglomerates and lower-level workers/suppliers.
• He proposes that companies exceeding profit targets share excess after-tax profits.
• This initiative aims to address concerns about worsening inequality and its potential drag on economic growth.
• The conservative opposition has criticized the idea as state intervention undermining the free market.
• The minister is framing the proposal as a soft appeal and a public dialogue, not a mandate.
• South Korea’s economy is characterized by large conglomerates with extensive supply chains, making inequality a structural issue.
• The AI build-out has concentrated gains in a few chipmakers, prompting governments worldwide to consider wider profit distribution. Continue reading https://thenextweb.com/news/south-korea-share-ai-profits-labour-minister