SEOUL – South Korea came in 10th place among 70 countries in a global digital and artificial intelligence (AI) competitiveness ranking, the science ministry said Wednesday. The country moved up eight spots from the previous year, according to the report published by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), a Swiss-based business school, according to the ministry. Taking the top spot this year was the United States, rising from its fourth spot a year ago. Canada, however, lost its top-spot position to be ranked at fifth place this year. Among countries in the Asia-Pacific region, Singapore was ranked second place, China came in at seventh place, and Japan ranked 19th place. By category, South Korea ranked third in the technology infrastructure and efficiency metrics. The country ranked first place in the research and development expenditure per gross domestic product (GDP) category and ranked eighth in the AI adaptation index, the ministry said. The science ministry added that South Korea’s rise in overall rankings was a result of the government’s policy efforts and the country’s strong resilience, and vowed to swiftly carry out major AI and digital policies.