The ‘SF Future Sketch Workshop’ held at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) on December 13. In the Semiconductor Technology Research Division lab, Senior Researcher Kim Jae-wook demonstrates an autonomous driving system primarily based on the neuromorphic chip ‘FirstClass,’ which has discovered the driving habits of a human driver. Photo by Nam Yun-joong
[Editor’s Note] Technology is advancing quickly, however it’s not simple to check how these modifications will permeate our every day lives and society. To discover this query collectively, Dong-A Science held the ‘SF Future Sketch Workshop’ twice, at Amorepacific and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), bringing collectively researchers, creators, and younger folks.
“This autonomous driving system is implemented with a neuromorphic chip that mimics the principles of the human cerebellum’s neural network. It learns a human driver’s tendencies, providing a smoother ride than conventional autonomous vehicles.”
On December 13, in a lab at the KIST Semiconductor Technology Research Division, all eyes have been mounted on the monitor as Senior Researcher Kim Jae-wook defined. On the display, a automobile simulator drove down a highway whereas a bodily steering wheel on the desk turned subtly.
The driving of the neuromorphic chip automobile was distinctly totally different, even underneath the identical highway situations. It was a beat slower than present autonomous vehicles however drove extra stably on complicated roads.
“It seems to have learned the style of a safe driver. We definitely wouldn’t want it to learn from a reckless driver, right?” Kim added, and laughter crammed the lab. It was a second that made everybody understand that semiconductors mimicking the human mind usually are not a distant story however a tangible, functioning know-how proper earlier than their eyes.
● A Chip That Resembles the Human Brain, Moving Before Our Eyes
The lab tour that day was the primary a part of the ‘SF Future Sketch’ workshop, held in collaboration with KIST, which can rejoice its sixtieth anniversary in 2026.
Despite the sleet, the lab was full of 30 individuals who had gathered out of curiosity for science, SF, and the analysis taking place at KIST.
The featured know-how was a neuromorphic semiconductor that mimics the working rules of the human mind’s neural community. Senior Researcher Kim, who developed ‘FirstClass,’ a Spiking Neural Network (SNN) {hardware} impressed by the way in which human neurons trade spike indicators through synapses—a primary in Korea—personally demonstrated the know-how he had showcased at CES 2024 for the individuals.
While a traditional pc’s central processing unit performs calculations sequentially, a neuromorphic chip is modeled after the mind’s neural community construction, the place numerous neurons function in parallel. This structural distinction results in a stark distinction in power effectivity.
During the 2016 match between Lee Sedol 9-dan and AlphaGo, AlphaGo used about 1 megawatt (MW) of energy for a single sport, whereas Lee Sedol’s mind consumed solely about 20 watts (W).
“Why mimic the cerebellum specifically among all brain regions?” “Can’t this be solved with software alone, without a neuromorphic chip?” As the reason continued, individuals confirmed eager curiosity, asking a sequence of questions.
The workshop kicked off with a lecture and lab tour on superior semiconductor know-how. Kim Hyung-jun, Director of KIST’s Center for Next-Generation Semiconductors, introduces the ultra-large-scale computation semiconductor (RPU) know-how. Photo by Nam Yun-joong
The lab tour continued to the semiconductor fabrication website. Guided by Kim Hyung-jun, Director of KIST’s Center for Next-Generation Semiconductors, individuals peered by way of a roughly 1㎡ glass window into the KIST Clean Room. Inside was a Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) machine.
It’s a tool that maintains an ultra-high vacuum atmosphere inside, near outer area at 10^-12 Torr (1 Torr is 1/760 of normal atmospheric strain). Gasps of awe have been heard among the many individuals when Director Kim talked about {that a} single machine prices “between 2 and 3 billion won.”
Director Kim conducts analysis on ultra-large-scale computation semiconductors (RPUs) utilizing the chips fabricated right here. He defined that RPU is a brand new computing paradigm that simply solves huge combinatorial optimization issues, that are troublesome and energy-intensive for typical computing. It’s a know-how anticipated to play a key function in issues with an explosive variety of variables, corresponding to new drug growth or local weather prediction.
The workshop kicked off with a lecture and lab tour on superior semiconductor know-how. Kim Hyung-jun, Director of KIST’s Center for Next-Generation Semiconductors, introduces the ultra-large-scale computation semiconductor (RPU) know-how. Photo by Nam Yun-joong
● When Technology Becomes a Story
After the lab tour, the individuals break up into teams. Having witnessed the slicing fringe of next-generation semiconductor analysis, it was time to design an SF story in regards to the future that this know-how might unlock.
With individuals from various backgrounds—together with center and highschool college students who love science, college college students dreaming of changing into researchers, skilled creators, and winners of SF competitions—every individual highlighted totally different factors from the identical scene. Post-it notes with concepts rapidly piled up on the tables.
One group, deeply impressed by the neuromorphic chip, prolonged their creativeness to a ‘firefighter’s suit.’ “Could a rookie firefighter wearing a suit that has learned the movements of a veteran firefighter be made to follow those movements exactly?”
During the group synopsis session, SF critic Lee Ji-yong, a professor at Dankook University’s Cross-disciplinary Talent Nurturing Program for Humanities and Social Sciences, offers recommendation as individuals share concepts to flesh out their tales. Photo by Nam Yun-joong
In response to the query from Seo Seung-woo, a college scholar with a eager curiosity in science and know-how, Senior Researcher Kim, serving as a technical mentor, replied, “Theoretically, it’s possible,” including, “We could see sentient objects with their own will, like the Invisibility Cloak in the Harry Potter movies.”
Park Jong-bin, a college scholar majoring in pc engineering, shifted the main target to labor. “If we train a robot equipped with a neuromorphic chip on human labor, can humans be liberated from work?” Senior Researcher Kim talked about Google’s 2024 cleansing robotic ‘Aloha’ for example, noting, “That concept is already approaching reality.” He added, “However, the advantages of neuromorphic chips become more apparent in more complex and sophisticated tasks.”
Meanwhile, a gaggle of younger Dong-A Science subscribers used safety know-how as the start line for his or her story. They envisioned a state of affairs the place totally different applied sciences like RPU, blockchain, and quantum know-how are used for safety, making a story that explores which know-how can be the spear and which might be the protect.
“Couldn’t the competition between nations, each choosing a different security technology, lead to conflict?”
To this query from scholar Park Seong-ha (Oryun Middle School, 1st grade), RPU skilled Director Kim replied, “It’s a possibility,” explaining, “No single technology can be said to be absolutely superior, but each has different strengths and weaknesses, and countries and companies are indeed making huge investments with these possibilities in mind.”
To the follow-up query, “So, who should be the ultimate winner to make it scientifically plausible?” Director Kim answered with a smile, “Nobody knows yet.”
The incontrovertible fact that there was no definitive reply spurred much more creativeness. An thought emerged proper then and there to painting the competitors between safety applied sciences not as a easy matter of successful or dropping, however as a ‘never-ending battle’ with continuously altering encryption programs.
After that, the desk was lined with Post-it notes bearing a mixture of phrases like ‘security,’ ‘crypto,’ ‘industrial spy,’ and ‘quantum.’ With technical recommendation from the researchers, the scattered concepts started to type the spine of a scientifically believable story.
Responding to a query from a gaggle designing a synopsis on safety, Kim Hyung-jun, Director of KIST’s Center for Next-Generation Semiconductors, explains the worldwide competitors in safety know-how. Photo by Nam Yun-joong
● Synopses Question the Direction of Technology
“Our group arrange a world the place RPU and neuromorphic computer systems are commercialized. We imagined a narrative a couple of genius F1 racer, pressured to retire because of a neck damage, who returns to the observe with a racing automobile powered by a neuromorphic chip that has discovered his racing model.
The protagonist’s rival group makes use of an unauthorized RPU-based AI system to realize near-perfect driving, however a second arrives within the last race when that perfection begins to crack.”
As scholar Lee Sun-woo (Jeju Gwiil Middle School, third grade) started his synopsis presentation, the ambiance within the room instantly turned targeted. Though it was a brief story titled ‘Neuromorphic F1 Race,’ it was a second the place the distinction between the 2 computing strategies, neuromorphic chips and RPU, was naturally understood by way of a scene from a race.
Lee Ji-yong, an SF critic and professor at Dankook University’s Cross-disciplinary Talent Nurturing Program for Humanities and Social Sciences, remarked, “It’s fascinating how you’ve re-imagined a domain like sports, which pushes the body to its limits, with new technology.” He added that the introduction of a protagonist who can now not race because of damage and the choice introduced is “a theme that also connects with discussions on posthumanism.”
Director Kim suggested, “The setup of a showdown between RPU and a neuromorphic car is a story that’s only possible with an understanding of the characteristics of both technologies. The story would be even more solid if more technical details were woven in.”
Other teams’ synopses every had a transparent tone. There was ‘The Temperature of Independence, 310K,’ which questioned human self-reliance after a society accustomed to room-temperature superconducting neuromorphic implants is reduce off from the know-how. Another, ‘Climate Trading,’ depicted a society the place next-generation semiconductor-based local weather prediction is misused not for public security however to govern actual property costs, which drew laughs as “the kind of SF that could only come from Korea.”
‘Ouroboros,’ which centered on the connection between AI and people, was a piece that questioned the extent to which know-how might change into a pondering, judging entity. Stories like these, which depicted not solely the potential of know-how but in addition its failures and limitations, continued. A chief instance was ‘Nirvana Dugi,’ a chunk by a gaggle of SF writers and aspiring writers.
The story begins in ‘Nirvana,’ a world the place low-power semiconductors appear to have succeeded. Dugi, a Baduk trainee, learns from an AI grasp named ‘Omega’ however discovers by way of previous sport information that his world is definitely a simulation.
In the true world, the place low-power semiconductors failed, humanity is getting ready to extinction because the Earth overheats from an explosion of AI servers. Nirvana was a world created by calculating ‘the road not taken by humanity.’ Dugi himself was an AI-generated character.
Professor Lee commented, “Imagining a post-human extinction starting point is a common trope in SF. It’s impressive how technology is portrayed not just as a tool but as an entity that co-evolves with humanity.”
Senior Researcher Kim added, “Imagining a future where low-power semiconductors failed actually made me, as a researcher, reflect on the points we need to be more cautious about. The story effectively conveys the message that the more powerful the technology, the more important societal-level restraint and control become.”
In that the individuals who create know-how and the individuals who think about the longer term it can create got here collectively to ponder its makes use of and course, the workshop left a legacy that went past its tangible outcomes.
Concluding the workshop, Director Kim mentioned, “It was a time to see how the technology from our labs, which we usually discuss only in terms of facts, can be interpreted in a social context. I hope these attempts to connect technology and society, research and imagination, will continue.”
Visions of the longer term sketched by workshop individuals. Set in a world the place neuromorphic chips and RPUs are commercialized, these illustrations visualize how next-generation semiconductor know-how might change human lives. From left: a firefighter’s go well with that learns the abilities of a veteran, a race automobile that displays a human racer’s driving model, and a future metropolis the place low-power semiconductors are utilized. (From left: Park Jong-bin, Seo Seung-woo, Lee Young-hye, Kim Kyung-rim, Min Ian, Lee Young-mi). Photo by Nam Yun-joong
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