Lee Jung-jae Outlines Vision at KAIST Forum “AI Is an Opportunity for the Entertainment Industry”
The “Innovate Korea 2025” was held on April 9 at the Ryu Geun-cheol Sports Complex at KAIST in Daejeon, under the theme “Tech Up the Party!”.
In attendance were Lee Jung-jae, director and actor of Artist Company, and CEO Hwang Kyung-joo, who engaged in a discussion about the growth potential of the entertainment industry through the integration of science and technology.
When asked “Is the integration of AI into the film industry a crisis or an opportunity?”, Lee Jung-jae replied, “AI is definitely being felt on set, and I see it as an opportunity. If we view AI not as a tool of automation but as a partner that expands a creator’s imagination, then the question of what stories to tell within the multitude of possibilities generated by AI remains ours. Emotional resonance is still created by people, not algorithms.”
In January, Artist Company signed a business agreement with global AI startup Perplexity, officially launching its AI ventures in Korea’s B2B market. Perplexity, which introduced an AI search engine in 2022, has since secured large-scale investments from NVIDIA and SoftBank, reaching a corporate valuation of $9 billion.
Artist Company is also laying its foundation as a tech firm by operating an advertising platform that utilizes big data and AI, indicating a positive trajectory for AI applications in production.
Lee Jung-jae shared his dual vision, “As an actor, I still aim to meet audiences with new stories and quality content that elevate the value of K-content. As an executive, I hope to build a new ecosystem by bridging technology and content. Through AI-based fandom platforms and interactive content, I want Artist Company to grow into a global entertech firm, and be remembered 10 years from now as someone who connected technology and content to write a new success story.”
Meanwhile, on March 28, Artist Company held its annual shareholders’ meeting and officially changed its name from Artist United to Artist Company—a move meant to reinforce its content-focused brand identity and accelerate global expansion. The company manages over 20 actors, including Lee Jung-jae and Jung Woo-sung, and is also recognized as a production house behind works like the film “Hunt” and the drama “The Silent Sea”.
