This article is by Seo Ji-eun and read by an artificial voice.



In honor of the Korea JoongAng Daily's 25th anniversary, we present a series of in-depth feature stories tackling the complex challenges Korea faces today. This edition delves into how North Korea's growing AI capabilities pose new threats in cybersecurity and the growing AI arms race. - Ed.

A new arms race is underway, not over nuclear warheads, but over AI.

As global powers scramble to weaponize AI, North Korea is muscling into the battleground of machine-driven warfare, determined to prove that sanctions won't keep it sidelined.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for the rapid development of newly introduced AI technologies during a test of suicide attack drones on Sept. 18. Weeks later, at the opening of the country's "Defense Development 2025" annual arms exhibition, Kim vowed to make AI and unmanned systems a central pillar of North Korea's military modernization - a push he linked to "great-power status."

Beyond the battlefield, Pyongyang is also integrating generative AI and deepfake technologies into its cyber operations. Its state-backed hacking groups have used synthetic identities to infiltrate foreign tech companies, and AI-enhanced malware to steal cryptocurrency and defense secrets.

Analysts in South Korea and in the United States warn that North Korea's pursuit of AI-powered weapons and cyber capabilities could open a new asymmetric front in the decades-old conflict on the Korean Peninsula.



The drone revolution

Leader Kim is aggressively pushing to incorporate AI into North Korea's weaponry, especially its drones.

"The field of unmanned equipment and artificial intelligence should be top-prioritized and developed in modernizing the armed forces," Kim declared in early 2025.

At the test of loitering munitions in September, he emphasized the need for making "primary efforts to rapidly developing the newly-introduced artificial intelligence technology," according to the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Kim personally oversaw the test of suicide drones modeled on Russia's Lancet and Israel's Harop. For the first time, Pyongyang even released unblurred footage of these drones striking mock-ups of U.S. armored vehicles, which experts read as a bold signal of confidence in their accuracy.



The test also revealed a new name: the "Kumsong" series tactical drones. People Power Party Rep. Yu Yong-weon, a member of the parliamentary defense committee, said the drones "likely have rudimentary AI that memorizes and studies target shapes" to carry out precision strikes.

Hong Min, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, pointed out the emergence of larger warheads, improved optical guidance systems and a performance upgrade enabling fully autonomous strike capabilities in North Korea's drones since March 2023 as "signs of technological collaboration with Russia."

Prof. Lim Eul-chul of Kyungnam University's Institute for Far Eastern Studies noted that the Kumsong line shifts "from imitation to independent sophistication," suggesting North Korea's unmanned arsenal is entering an "AI integration phase."

However, some analysts urge caution in accepting North Korea's AI claims at face value.

"North Korea has claimed that the drones tested included artificial intelligence, but [...] the degree to which the drones were flown by people as opposed to AI is unclear, though it's quite possible that a mixture of the two was used," said Bruce Bennett, senior defense analyst at RAND Corporation, a U.S. think tank.

He also questioned Pyongyang's ability to scale production under international sanctions.

"There is the question of how many drones North Korea can afford to produce and produce the required high-tech electronics for them [...] given that such electronics tend to be covered by the sanctions against North Korea," Bennett added.

At the opening of the Defense Development 2025 exhibition earlier this month, Kim doubled...