Explore the Latest Stories
Explore the latest essays, analysis, and serialized fiction from Korea Insight Weekly.
We bring in-depth perspectives on Korea’s society, culture, and the future shaped by technology.
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Epi 01: PLUTO. Part 9 — Before the Missile
“Are you suggesting that I pay you to keep this incident out of the press?” At the hologram chairman’s completely unexpected response, Mika’s expression hardened. “What you just said is an insult to journalists. I expect an apology. I am only interested in pursuing the truth.” The hologram chairman rose and walked toward Mika, then…
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Because of these words, I will be buried by Joseon society
Yet I choose to speak and die, rather than rot away in silence. In 1934, during the Japanese colonial period,a short essay was published in the magazine Samcheolli.Its title was A Confession of Divorce.The author was Na Hye-seok. She was known as Korea’s first female Western-style painter and a “New Woman.”After her divorce, she wrote…
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Epi 01: PLUTO. Part 8 — The Chairman Who Isn’t There
Mika visits Tera Group’s headquarters to meet the chairman, only to find a holographic version claiming to be in New York. While the chairman delivers corporate talking points about the booming robot market, Mika presses him on the murder of the union leader. When she projects the restored CCTV footage—showing police robot Pluto transporting the…
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Please Do Not Delete Coupang.
The Coupang data breach revealed more than a failure of security. It exposed the reality of a system-driven corporation that millions depend on for work, consumption, and survival. This essay examines Coupang not as a moral villain, but as a piece of modern infrastructure—raising a difficult question: to leave, or not to leave.
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Epi 01: PLUTO. Part 7 — The Anger Frequency
After Mika realizes that Pluto has been watching her, Leo shows her the 2026 paper published by Dr. Jang Jin-gyu: “Malfunction Patterns in Robots Subjected to Prolonged Abuse.” The study reveals that robots subjected to long-term abuse display patterns similar to the human “anger frequency,” raising the possibility that robots may develop free will. Confronted…
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A Life Built Over Thirty Years, Erased in Forty-Eight Hours
On December 5, 2025, Dispatch reported that actor Cho Jin-woong (born Cho Won-jun) had been involved in a violent juvenile incident thirty years ago. The controversy quickly escalated into a nationwide debate over the purpose of juvenile justice, the possibility of rehabilitation, and the standards by which a public figure’s past should be disclosed. Within…
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Epi 01: PLUTO. Part 6 — The Right to Exist
Mika visits Dr. Jang to question him about the Terra Plant incident and shows him high-resolution CCTV footage of an unknown robot. But Dr. Jang gives only cryptic answers, and the calm precision with which he and his secretary Rachel handle vast amounts of data deepens Mika’s suspicion rather than resolving it.
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“We could only watch the fire. We were all the same.”
The blaze at Hong Kong’s Tai Po “Wang Fuk Court,” which spread across multiple high-rise blocks during exterior renovation work, revealed a convergence of structural vulnerabilities: flammable construction materials, malfunctioning fire alarms, and resident warnings that had gone unheeded. This tragedy raises a pressing question—why do disasters built into the system keep repeating?
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Ep 01: PLUTO. Part 5 — Arc of Joan
Mika visits Dr. Jang’s sprawling mansion and discovers a massive stained-glass window depicting Joan of Arc — and the face in the artwork looks uncannily like her own. Drawn to this strange resemblance, Mika begins questioning Dr. Jang in search of clues about the Pluto incident.
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What Do Humans Live On in the Age of AI?
A growing divide defines the AI era: while some gain new high-skill opportunities, many workers fear AI as a quiet signal of future layoffs. This essay examines Korea’s rising anxiety, global restructuring trends, and what it means for human dignity and the right to live well in a world where machines take on more human…