Korea to Develop ‘Creative AI’ to Restore Faded Cultural Heritage in High Fidelity

Korea Heritage Administration(KHA) has announced plans to develop a creative AI model tailored for Korean heritage capable of generating high-fidelity digital content based on the nation’s cultural assets. The initiative, unveiled on August 14 (KST), is part of the government’s 2025 AI and Data Lake Utilization Project, which supports private cloud-based AI development. The KHA is leading the effort in consortium with the Korea Heritage Agency and AI startup Motif Technologies.

At the core of the project is the creation of a multimodal artificial intelligence system that can process and synthesize text, images, audio, and 3D data simultaneously. One of the key applications will be a text-to-image generation tool capable of producing accurate visual representations of Korean national heritage based on written input.

The KHA plans to curate and refine datasets from three main categories—tangible cultural assets, natural heritage, and intangible heritage—and use them to train high-quality AI models. These models will be linked to a Korean-language large language model (LLM) to ensure both semantic accuracy and expressive depth. The agency expects this advancement to address issues found in current AI systems, such as incorrect search results and distorted imagery related to heritage content.

Once completed, the AI system will be integrated into existing digital platforms like the National Heritage Digital Service and the National Heritage Channel, making it accessible to the general public. The project is also expected to lower entry barriers for content creators and invigorate the creative ecosystem surrounding Korean heritage.

By combining cultural preservation with cutting-edge AI technologies, South Korea aims to expand public access to its heritage and enable new forms of digital storytelling rooted in national identity.

The original article is available on the Korean government’s official policy briefing website.