The Science and Technology Department of The Chosun Ilbo, the most authoritative media in South Korea, has selected the top ten science and technology news stories of 2024. The keyword for the science and technology industry this year is "drastic changes".

As artificial intelligence (AI) with human-level capabilities spreads globally, the existing industrial landscape has been completely shaken. Whether enterprises can adapt to the trend of the AI era determines their fate. The share price of Nvidia, the powerhouse in AI semiconductors, has soared, and the popularity of its CEO, Jensen Huang, has also risen sharply. In contrast, Samsung Electronics and Intel, which were previously leaders in the semiconductor industry, are facing crises due to failure to meet performance expectations.

There are both bright and dark sides in terms of technology. Neuralink, a neuroscience startup founded by Elon Musk, successfully implanted computer chips into the brains of paralyzed patients this year, ushering in a new era of brain science. The "Starship," the largest spacecraft in human history, also completed a successful test flight. However, the dark side of technology also exists. This year, with the development of AI, image synthesis technology has become increasingly sophisticated, and deepfake sexual crime issues have emerged in droves from the United States to South Korea. Microsoft's cloud service suffered a malfunction, causing work around the world to come to a standstill, resulting in an "IT blackout" incident.

1. From Taylor Swift to South Korean teenagers encountering "deepfakes"

With the development of AI, image synthesis technology has become increasingly refined, and "deepfake sexual crimes" in which real facial photos are added with pornographic content have swept across the globe. At the beginning of this year, a sexual crime video with the face of global pop star Taylor Swift synthesized spread rapidly. In South Korea, there have also been deepfake sexual crime cases targeting students. As generative AI has made it easier to produce deepfake sexual crime videos and enabled them to spread quickly through social media, regulatory legislation for relevant technologies and platforms is being advanced.

2. The game of hide-and-seek between the US and China around semiconductors... AI chips being stolen and the US blocking

The US-China trade war over advanced semiconductors and AI continued to escalate this year. Although the US has been constantly strengthening supervision, Chinese enterprises are suspected of smuggling US AI semiconductors through overseas students or setting up overseas subsidiaries. In response to this, the US announced earlier this month that it would also include high-bandwidth memory (HBM) produced by SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics in its export control scope, releasing a stricter third round of supervision plan. China responded by imposing export control measures on major mineral resources such as gallium and germanium to the US, further intensifying the tense situation.

3. Samsung Electronics in crisis, with management formally apologizing

Theories about the crisis of Samsung Electronics have been emerging continuously. In October last year, Vice President Jeon Young-hyun, head of Samsung Electronics' semiconductor division, issued an apology letter due to the failure to meet market expectations in the third quarter. Not only was the semiconductor performance poor, but since its establishment, Samsung's labor union has gone on strike, increasing internal risks. In addition, the new wireless earphone product "Galaxy Buds 3" launched in July last year had quality problems and began the process of replacement and refund. Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong appeared in court and stated, "We will strive to make Samsung an enterprise loved by the people," demonstrating the determination to overcome the crisis.

4. Intel's endless decline

Intel, which once dominated the world with "Intel Inside," failed to adapt to the changes brought about by AI and had a tough year this year. Its ambitiously launched AI accelerator "Gaudi" series failed to surpass the dominance of Nvidia. As a new business, Intel's return to the foundry business has been slow in the face of the strong competition from TSMC and Samsung Electronics. Intel initiated a layoff of 15,000 employees to implement emergency management, but the situation is still not optimistic. CEO Pat Gelsinger, who vowed to be Intel's savior and returned, also resigned earlier this month.

5. From the brain to the universe... Elon Musk's crazy presence

This year is the "Year of Elon Musk." Neuralink, a neuroscience startup founded by Musk, successfully implanted computer chips into the brains of paralyzed patients in January this year, opening a new era in brain science. SpaceX, his private aerospace company, successfully conducted the test flight of the "Starship," the largest spacecraft in human history, getting one step closer to Mars exploration. Musk, who supported Donald Trump in the US presidential election, was appointed as the co-head of the "Department of Government Efficiency," an advisory body of the Trump administration, further enhancing his political influence.

6. Jensen Huang, the top star in the IT field... Even a Taiwanese food map emerged

The popularity of Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, which leads the AI era, continued from last year and remained high this year. For Nvidia's annual event, Computex, Huang visited Taiwan, took photos with many citizens, and signed autographs for fans on the day of his return, causing a delay in his departure time. The Taipei City Tourism Bureau collected the night markets and restaurants he visited during his stay in Taiwan and created the "Jensen Huang Food Map." During Computex, not only global semiconductor giants such as AMD, Intel, Qualcomm, and ARM were present, but also more than 6,000 spectators showed up, highlighting his popularity.

7. Global big tech companies hit by investigations and fines

Global big tech companies continued to face a difficult period. Countries have taken various measures to protect their domestic industries and try to break free from the influence of big tech companies. The European Union fined Apple approximately 2.7 trillion won earlier this year on the grounds that it violated antitrust laws. The US Department of Justice, citing violations of antitrust laws, demanded that Google sell its web browser Chrome. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg bowed his head and apologized to the families of online child sexual exploitation victims at a hearing held by the Senate Judiciary Committee in Washington, DC.

8. Microsoft's cloud service paralysis leads to the global IT blackout

In July this year, Microsoft's (MS) cloud service encountered an error during a security program update, causing businesses such as aviation, banking, and hospitals around the world to come to a standstill. This malfunction occurred during the process of the US-based large cybersecurity company "CrowdStrike" updating security programs on Microsoft's cloud service "Azure." Industry insiders believe that this incident symbolically demonstrates the vulnerability of our daily lives in a "hyper-connected society" with close network connections.

9. Bitcoin surges as Trump is elected

With Donald Trump's election as the US president, virtual assets have entered a period of prosperity. Trump promised during his campaign that "he would make the US the capital of virtual assets" and claimed to be an advocate of virtual assets. After Trump's election, the price of the representative virtual asset, Bitcoin, exceeded $100,000 for the first time. It is expected that the Trump administration will include Bitcoin in the national reserve assets, and the price of Bitcoin is expected to reach $200,000 next year.

10. Kakao founder Kim Beom-soo detained

This year, South Korea's big tech company Kakao had its worst year as its founder and Chairman of the Management Innovation Committee, Kim Beom-soo, was detained on suspicion of manipulating the share price of SM Entertainment. Kim Beom-soo was released on bail in October after being detained for about three months, but due to the need to stand trial as a defendant, management and operation troubles will continue. Kakao plans to restructure its business centered around its core business and continue to develop services with AI at the core. Through this strategy, it aims to minimize enterprise risks while preparing for future growth drivers.