The Chief of the South Korean Presidential Policy Planning Staff proposed using AI Tax to distribute money to citizens, causing a temporary stock market downturn.

BlockBeats News, May 12th, Presidential Secretary of the Office of Policy, Kim Yong-beom, stated that the country should use the tax revenue from AI profits to pay "dividends" to citizens.

Impacted by this news, the South Korean Kospi index experienced a sharp drop of 5.1%. However, after Kim Yong-beom clarified that he hoped to use the "excess tax revenue" generated by AI prosperity, rather than impose a new windfall tax on corporate profits, the market decline narrowed. The stock prices of Samsung and SK Hynix initially fell but later regained most of the lost ground.

CEO of Fibonacci Global Asset Management, Jung In Yun, commented that Kim Yong-beom's remarks "indicate that the South Korean government is increasingly viewing AI as national infrastructure, not just another tech trend. This is a positive development for South Korea's AI ecosystem—particularly for companies involved in semiconductors, power equipment, and domestic AI platforms."