September 22, 2025
SEOUL – No one knows K-pop methodology better than Lee Soo-man, founder of SM Entertainment and currently visionary leader at US-based A2O Entertainment. He believes the future of K-pop will be shaped by artificial intelligence, emerging technologies and fan-driven content.
Lee has long championed the concept of Culture Technology, a system encompassing casting, training, production and marketing. He produced some of K-pop’s most iconic acts, from legendary groups like H.O.T., S.E.S., and BoA to TVXQ, Super Junior, Girls’ Generation and more recent acts such as NCT and aespa — bringing the genre to audiences worldwide.
“CT evolves as we pass management processes to the next generation, adapting them to contemporary trends,” he said Friday during the Global Media Conference held in Seoul.
Reflecting on the role of the modern producer, Lee said, “Beyond making music, a producer is an architect of culture — someone who reads the times, blends technology with culture and designs content that can communicate with the world. In this sense, a producer can even be a creator of a new civilization.”
To illustrate, he cited music producers like J.Y. Park and Teddy, “Parasite” director Bong Joon-ho, “KPop Demon Hunters” director Maggie Kang, former Vietnamese national football team manager Park Hang-seo and Ejae — a composer and singer who trained under SM Entertainment — as Korean global cultural architects.
“Korea must become a global hub where producers can grow, collaborate and gain the skills to shape the future of worldwide music,” Lee said.
Looking ahead, Lee introduced the concept of “Zalpha Pop,” music designed for Generations Z and Alpha.
“Zalpha Pop represents music enjoyed and led by younger generations, and the future will be a world where AI and celebrities coexist,” he said.
A2O Entertainment’s upcoming projects reflect this vision.
Lee announced that A2O Rookies, composed of Gen Z and Alpha trainees, will embark on global activities alongside fans. The company currently operates “A2O Zone” and “A2O Channel,” platforms that allow fans to create and share content.
In collaboration with tech firm 4DV Intelligence, A2O also developed Infinite Studio, a revolutionary filming and editing system that recently won first place in computer graphics at the Siggraph 2025 conference in Vancouver.
Lee described it as “a technology that allows flexible camera work and post-shoot editing, enabling the creation of multiple versions of the same scene within an hour.” He joked that even director Bong could achieve in one hour what previously required complex AI techniques.
Further embracing AI, A2O launched Blooming Talk, a chatbot combining AI and one-on-one celebrity interactions. Lee said these technologies, combined with evolving fandoms, could create a generation of “prosumers” — fans who both consume and co-create content, gaining economic rewards and becoming platform stakeholders.
Lee also unveiled plans for A2O School, a space for young people to discover and express their talents across diverse fields, nurturing future prosumers and producers.
Recent A2O successes underscore Lee’s influence. The girl group A2O May, composed entirely of Chinese members, made history as the first such group to enter the US Mediabase Top 40 for five consecutive weeks, while also setting records as Chinese female artists. Their debut EP “Paparazzi Arrive” is scheduled for October, following the August release of the single “B.B.B (Bigger Badder Better) [feat. A2O LTG],” which topped QQ Music’s daily chart and reached No. 3 on China’s Hot Song chart.
jaaykim@heraldcorp.com
