(Note: Added comments and photos in last 4 paragraphs)
SEOUL, Jan. 21 (Yonhap) — The Bank of Korea (BOK) on Wednesday announced an internal artificial intelligence (AI) application developed in partnership with internet giant Naver Inc. for use in internal data analysis and research.
At a joint AI conference held in Seoul, the Bank of Korea announced an AI application specializing in the financial economy called BOKI (Bank Of Korea Intelligence).
Bank of Korea Governor Lee Chang-young (front row, third from the right), Naver founder and chairman Lee Hye-jin (front row, third from the left), and other officials pose for a photo at a conference on artificial intelligence held in Seoul on January 21, 2026. (Yonhap News)
The AI system, built on NAVER’s cloud infrastructure and large-scale language models (LLM), is deployed within BOK’s internal network for use by employees.
The unique system is structured around five core pillars that align with the central bank’s core functions, including answering user questions, summarizing and analyzing documents based on a wide range of research materials, and translating official publications into foreign languages.
Since 2020, the Bank of Korea has been promoting the use of digital technology to strengthen its research capabilities and establish a data governance framework, and full-scale development of BOKI will begin in 2024.
In his welcome address, Bank of Korea Governor Lee Chang-yong said, “Sovereign AI is needed to develop a system that deeply understands the history, institutions, and cultural characteristics of our country’s financial and economic system.”
He added, “The cooperation between Bank of Korea and Naver will be a catalyst to further revitalize the domestic AI industry through public-private cooperation.”
Naver founder and chairman Lee Hye-jin said the project is expected to strengthen South Korea’s financial intelligence and innovation.
“This initiative was undertaken with the shared recognition that the Bank of Korea’s data is an important national strategic asset that can contribute to prudent monetary policy and financial stability,” Lee said. “It is expected to help revolutionize the role of the central bank and take the country’s financial intelligence to the next level.”
This image provided by the Bank of Korea (BOK) on January 21, 2026, shows a newly introduced artificial intelligence (AI) system called BOKI. (Photo not for sale) (Yonhap News)
graceoh@yna.co.kr
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