Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun of the People Power Party on Wednesday sharply criticized the Lee Jae-myung administration's proposed "AI National Dividend" and excess profit redistribution debate, declaring that "what is needed now is not a politics of dividing money, but a politics that opens opportunities for all citizens to build their future."
Holding a press conference at the National Assembly, Yoon argued that the very term "excess profit" is flawed. "The phrase 'excess profit' already contains a value judgment that profits have exceeded a justifiable level," he said. "It makes even the gains companies earn through technology development and investment look like unfair profits."
Yoon also strongly objected to redistribution discussions targeting semiconductor companies. "The profits that Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and SK hynix (000660.KS) have earned over decades by investing in semiconductor R&D and accumulating technology cannot be defined as 'excess profit,'" he said. "These are innovation profits created through the interplay of innovation, investment, and international economic relations." He warned that "branding such profits as 'excess' and creating justification for clawing them back shakes the very foundation of Korea's industrial competitiveness."
Yoon further argued that the government's approach misses the core issue of the AI era. "The crisis of the AI era is not about who takes how much, but about how technological progress reshapes jobs and industrial structures," he said. "Distributing money like cash is merely a prescription that temporarily eases anxiety. It does not build the foundation and capabilities for citizens to sustain their lives."
On the recent conflict surrounding performance bonuses, Yoon emphasized the structural problem. "The fundamental issue lies in a structure where performance is extremely concentrated in specific large corporations and specific sectors, and where the fruits do not translate into expanded opportunities for the entire nation," he noted.
At the same time, he said market fundamentalism also has its limits. "Can we only respond to citizens' anxiety about losing jobs to AI by saying 'the market will solve it'?" Yoon asked. "Just because the left's answer is wrong, it does not automatically follow that the right's market fundamentalism is correct."
As an alternative, Yoon proposed a "basic production access right." "In the AI era, data, technology, and digital infrastructure are the 'land' and 'factories' of the new age," he said. "Let us open the doors so that citizens can directly enter and work in these new factories." To achieve this, he proposed: ▲ building public AI infrastructure ▲ providing AI capability education for all citizens ▲ creating an AI-based jobs ecosystem.
"Citizens want not a paltry few coins, but the opportunity, tools, capabilities, and dignity to build their future," Yoon said. "Rather than trying to dazzle citizens with small change, let us build a world that gives citizens the opportunity to create their own future."
