GIST launches AI College to train semiconductor and AI talent

The Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology announced Tuesday that it has officially launched an AI College — an expanded and reorganized successor to its former College of Information and Computing — to train world-class talent in AI and semiconductor convergence in support of national AI and semiconductor strategy. The new college is headed by Dean Kim Jong-won.

Through the launch, GIST plans to serve as a key hub for the stable cultivation and supply of advanced AI and semiconductor talent in line with national strategy.

Built on the foundation of the former College of Information and Computing, the AI College opens with an education and research platform enrolling 990 students — 472 undergraduates and 518 graduate students. The college comprises five units: the Department of AI, the Department of AX, the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, the Department of Semiconductor Engineering, and the Graduate School of AI Policy and Strategy. It operates an integrated curriculum spanning undergraduate through master's and doctoral programs.

Going forward, GIST plans to further develop its AI talent pipeline through early talent identification in partnership with an AI gifted school, integrated undergraduate-graduate education, and industry-tailored curricula.

Starting with the 2027 academic year, the college will expand its undergraduate enrollment by about 100 seats over the previous year to approximately 330, strengthening the training of talent in advanced fields including AI, semiconductors and biotech. GIST also plans to continuously expand education in AI semiconductors and industrial AX by linking global industry-academia partnerships with advanced research infrastructure, with the goal of becoming the country's leading hub for AI and semiconductor convergence talent.

"The AI College is not simply the creation of a new school — it is the starting point of an educational transformation designed to proactively respond to national AI and semiconductor strategy and the demands of industry," GIST President Lim Ki-chul said. "We will establish ourselves as a core education and research hub that nurtures AX talent and supports South Korea's AI and semiconductor ecosystem."