South Korea's military said a ballistic missile launched from the Wonsan area on Saturday flew more than 700 kilometres, while North Korean state media said Kim Jong Un oversaw a hypersonic drill that used AI to change the missile's path.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said early Saturday that the military detected a ballistic missile launched from the Wonsan area toward the East Sea, also called the Sea of Japan. The missile flew more than 700 kilometres, Seoul said.
Hours later, Kim Yo Jong, sister of leader Kim Jong Un, called the projectile an intermediate-range strategic missile and said it could change its flight path at low altitude and that AI had been introduced into it. She did not explain how the software was used and claimed no other country would have access to such technology for several years.
Korean Central News Agency reported on Sunday that Kim Jong Un oversaw the launch, accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae, and that the drill trained soldiers operating a hypersonic strategic weapon system. Bloomberg, citing KCNA, said the missile was fired at dawn toward waters off the east coast and struck a designated target about 1,000 kilometres away.
Kim was quoted by KCNA as saying the drill showed the soldiers' qualifications and that North Korea must keep making adversaries recognize the reliability of its strategic weapons. South Korea, the United States and Japan said they were sharing information and maintaining their defense posture.
The launch came days after Seoul demanded an apology for a blast in the Demilitarized Zone that wounded three South Korean soldiers and that the South blamed on the North. Independent outlets have not verified the AI claim beyond Pyongyang's statements.