North Korea Tests AI-Equipped Missile Capable of Mid-Flight Course Correction

North Korea has claimed to have tested a medium-range strategic missile equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Pyongyang asserts that the missile can alter its trajectory even while flying at low altitudes, enabling it to evade an adversary's surveillance and defense systems.

The missile was launched on Saturday (October 3) from North Korea's eastern region towards the East Sea. The country's leader, Kim Jong-un, personally supervised the military exercise.

Earlier, the South Korean military reported that North Korea had fired a ballistic missile which traveled a distance of over 700 kilometers. Following the launch, South Korea, the United States, and Japan stepped up monitoring of the situation and increased the exchange of information regarding the missile.

Later, Kim Yo-jong—sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and a senior official in the ruling party—stated that it was a "medium-range strategic missile."

She claimed that the missile incorporates AI technology and is capable of changing its flight path even at low altitudes. However, Pyongyang did not release detailed technical information regarding how the AI ​​technology was utilized to guide the missile.

Kim Yo-jong asserted that intercepting the missile is extremely difficult due to this ability to alter its trajectory. She added that Kim Jong-un believes this technology possessed by North Korea remains beyond the reach of other nations.

Kim Jong-un had previously emphasized the need to further integrate artificial intelligence into the country's weapons systems.

According to Kim Yo-jong, while South Korea detected the initial course change as the North Korean missile followed a "wave-like, zigzagging" trajectory, it was unable to maintain continuous surveillance thereafter. However, this claim by Pyongyang has not been independently verified.

Meanwhile, military tensions between the two Koreas have also escalated recently. Seoul blamed Pyongyang after South Korean soldiers were injured in an explosion within the demilitarized zone along the border; North Korea has denied the allegation.

Analysts are also closely monitoring the integration of AI into military technology. According to Hong Sung-pyo, a senior researcher at the Seoul-based Korea Institute for Military Affairs, the use of artificial intelligence in military technology is growing globally, and ballistic missiles are no exception.

He notes that AI can assist at various stages, ranging from analyzing target data to missile launch and operation. However, it is difficult to say with certainty at this stage just how effective the AI ​​capabilities of North Korea's new missile actually are.

Hong Sung-pyo added that missiles capable of altering their trajectory as they approach a target can be difficult to intercept. However, possessing such a capability does not guarantee that the missile will strike its target with precision.