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Cultural technology

Cultural technology encompasses the tools, systems, and practices that enable the creation, communication, storage, and transmission of cultural information, thereby profoundly influencing human cognition, social structures, and societal evolution.^[1] Unlike material technologies such as hammers or vehicles, which primarily augment physical capabilities without reshaping thought patterns, cultural technologies—ranging from language and writing to digital media and artificial intelligence—fundamentally alter how individuals perceive, process, and interact with knowledge, often embedding societal values and extending collective memory beyond biological limits.^[1]^[2] Historically, these technologies have progressed from oral traditions reliant on memory and narrative to inscribed systems like cuneiform and alphabets, which facilitated abstract reasoning and scalable knowledge preservation.^[1] The invention of the printing press in the 15th century exemplified a pivotal shift, democratizing access to texts and catalyzing intellectual movements such as the Renaissance and Reformation by enabling rapid dissemination of ideas across populations.^[1] Subsequent innovations, including electronic broadcasting and the internet, introduced mass interactivity and decentralized production, accelerating cultural exchange while raising concerns over information overload and fragmented attention spans.^[1] In contemporary contexts, cultural technologies like large language models represent an advanced stage, capable of generating novel content from vast aggregated human data, which challenges traditional notions of authorship, creativity, and epistemic authority.^[1] While enabling unprecedented scalability in cultural production, they also provoke debates on causality—whether such systems merely reflect existing patterns or actively steer cultural trajectories through algorithmic biases inherited from training corpora.^[1] Empirical studies underscore their role in cumulative cultural evolution, where incremental adaptations compound over generations to drive societal adaptation, as seen in the global spread of literacy and numeracy via institutional transmission. These developments highlight cultural technology's dual capacity for innovation and disruption, demanding rigorous scrutiny of their long-term impacts on human agency and collective intelligence.^[1]

Etymology and Conceptual Foundations

Coinage by Lee Soo-man

Lee Soo-man, founder of SM Entertainment, coined the term "cultural technology" around 1997 to describe a systematic approach to producing and exporting K-pop artists and content across Asia.^[3]^[4] In a 2011 lecture at Stanford Graduate School of Business, he explained, "I coined this term about fourteen years ago, when S.M. decided to launch its artists and cultural content throughout Asia," framing it as an evolution beyond information technology into a more intricate process for cultural output.^[3]^[4] The coinage emerged amid SM's shift toward a "factory system" for idol development, inspired by Lee's observations of Western music industries like Motown and Japanese idol groups, combined with his vision for blending Korean elements with global appeal.^[3] He elaborated that "S.M. Entertainment and I see culture as a type of technology… much more exquisite and complex than information technology," emphasizing a manualized process (internally abbreviated as C.T.) that cataloged steps for scouting, training, choreography, music production, and market adaptation.^[3] This terminology underscored SM's pioneering role in institutionalizing K-pop as an engineered export, predating the group's debut of H.O.T. in 1996 but aligning with post-debut expansions into markets like China and Japan by the late 1990s.^[3]

Definition and Core Principles

Cultural Technology, as conceptualized by Lee Soo-man, founder of SM Entertainment, refers to a structured, systematic methodology for producing and disseminating cultural content, particularly in the K-pop industry, by integrating artistic elements with technological and managerial processes to achieve global scalability and appeal.^[5] This approach treats the creation of music, performances, and related media as an engineered process akin to manufacturing, emphasizing precision, repeatability, and data-driven optimization to maximize commercial viability and cultural exportation.^[6] Lee Soo-man developed this framework starting in the mid-1990s, drawing from observations of Western music industries and applying industrial principles to talent development, with SM Entertainment formalizing it as a core operational model by 1995.^[7] At its core, Cultural Technology operates through four integrated stages—casting, training, production, and marketing/management—designed to transform raw talent into polished, market-ready artists capable of sustained global performance.^[5] Casting involves global auditions to identify versatile trainees with potential in vocals, dance, and visuals; training spans 3-5 years of rigorous, multifaceted education in skills like language proficiency, performance etiquette, and media handling to instill discipline and adaptability.^[5] Production fuses music composition, choreography, and visual aesthetics with technological tools such as digital sound engineering and data analytics for trend prediction, while marketing leverages fan engagement platforms and strategic localization to penetrate international markets.^[8] This methodology prioritizes synergy between creative intuition and empirical metrics, such as audience response data, to refine outputs iteratively. A foundational element is the emphasis on institutionalization via proprietary manuals codifying production know-how, enabling scalable replication across projects without reliance on individual genius.^[6] Lee Soo-man has described it as combining "culture and technology in a systematic way," with SM's corporate mission explicitly aiming to "utilize CULTURE TECHNOLOGY to create the best cultural content" and promote Korean cultural exports.^[7] The principles underscore causal efficiency—where inputs like trainee investment yield measurable outputs in chart performance and revenue—while adapting to technological advancements, such as AI integration for content personalization in later iterations.^[5] This has underpinned SM's success in generating groups like H.O.T. and NCT, which embody expandable, unit-based structures for diverse market targeting.^[9]

Core Operational Stages

Casting

Casting constitutes the foundational stage of SM Entertainment's Cultural Technology system, wherein prospective trainees are scouted and auditioned to identify raw talent suitable for idol development. This process prioritizes individuals exhibiting potential in vocals, dance, performance charisma, and visual appeal, with selections informed by standardized evaluations rather than subjective favoritism. Lee Soo-man, SM's founder, structured casting as the entry point to a systematic pipeline, enabling the company to cultivate artists capable of global market penetration from inception.^[10] SM conducts casting through multiple channels, including annual global auditions held in over 20 countries, street scouting by talent agents, and online submissions via the official SMTOWN platform. Applicants must provide unedited video demonstrations of singing and dancing, alongside unaltered frontal and side-profile photographs to assess facial features and proportions without digital enhancement. This methodical approach filters thousands of candidates annually, with acceptance rates below 0.1% based on rigorous criteria emphasizing trainable aptitude over polished skill.^[11]^[12] The casting stage integrates cultural adaptability from the outset, particularly in later evolutions like the NCT project, where international recruits from nations such as China, Thailand, and Canada were selected to form subunits tailored to regional preferences. This global sourcing diversifies group compositions, mitigating cultural homogeneity and facilitating localized content strategies in subsequent production phases. Empirical success is evidenced by the debut of multilingual members who contributed to NCT's expansion into 23 subunits across 18 cities by 2018.^[13]^[14] Critics of the system note potential overemphasis on aesthetics, with internal evaluations reportedly assigning scores to attributes like height (minimum 170 cm for males) and body proportions, though SM maintains selections prioritize holistic potential verifiable through long-term trainee outcomes. Recent adaptations incorporate AI-assisted screening for preliminary filters, as articulated by Lee Soo-man in 2025, to enhance efficiency without supplanting human judgment.^[15]

Training

In the Cultural Technology framework developed by SM Entertainment, the training stage follows casting and focuses on transforming selected talents into versatile performers through structured skill development and holistic education. This phase, introduced by the company in 1995 as the industry's first systematic artist training program, emphasizes rigorous, personalized instruction to cultivate global competitiveness.^[16] Trainees receive training in core performance skills such as dance, singing, and acting, alongside supplementary areas including foreign languages, humanities, liberal arts, cultural arts, and practical competencies like songwriting and media etiquette.^[16]^[5] The curriculum extends beyond technical proficiency to encompass personal and ethical development, incorporating sex education, psychological counseling, global citizenship training on human rights and safety, overseas programs, and field studies for top performers.^[16] Training durations typically span 2 to 7 years, varying by individual aptitude, prior experience, and company evaluation of debut potential, with daily schedules involving intensive practice sessions—often 10 to 15 hours—tailored to address strengths and weaknesses.^[5] Progress is assessed through monthly or midterm evaluations conducted by professionals, executives, senior artists, and monitoring agents, who review vocal technique, choreography execution, stage presence, and overall adaptability; underperformers may face elimination, while high achievers advance to production preparation.^[16]^[5] SM Entertainment supports trainees with dedicated facilities, including equipped dance and vocal practice rooms, study areas, and dormitories, alongside comprehensive welfare provisions such as dietitian-planned free meals, regular health checkups, vaccinations, injury compensation, and travel reimbursements for overseas training.^[16] This investment aligns with the Cultural Technology goal of consistent production of world-class artists, as articulated by SM executives, who describe it as a long-term system prioritizing perfection through manualized coaching and versatility for international markets.^[5] The approach has enabled groups like NCT to integrate multilingual and multicultural elements, though it demands significant endurance, with trainees often relocating from diverse global backgrounds to Seoul for immersion.^[16]

Production

In the cultural technology framework developed by SM Entertainment, the production stage follows casting and training, focusing on the systematic creation of musical content, performances, and debut materials for artists. This phase integrates trained trainees into structured content development, where in-house producers, composers, and choreographers collaborate to craft songs, albums, music videos, and live performances optimized for market appeal. Lee Soo-man outlined this as part of a four-stage process—casting, training, content production, and marketing—designed to manufacture polished cultural products efficiently.^[10] SM's production emphasizes data-driven trend analysis from global music markets, incorporating elements such as rhythmic hooks, synchronized choreography, and hybrid genres (e.g., blending pop, hip-hop, and electronic dance music) to target Asian and international audiences. A&R executive Chris Lee described the approach as requiring "a really systematic process" to perfect cultural content, distinguishing it from ad-hoc Western production by prioritizing consistency and scalability through proprietary manuals encoding Lee Soo-man's know-how.^[5] This method enables rapid iteration, with producers analyzing chart data and consumer preferences to forecast hits, as evidenced by SM's output of over 100 albums annually in peak years like the 2010s.^[5] Key production elements include vocal matching to song structures, visual styling for group dynamics, and technological integration for high-fidelity recordings and effects, all aimed at creating "perfect" idol products. For instance, songs are often composed in-house by teams like those led by producers Kenzie or Yoo Young-jin, who adapt global influences into K-pop formulas, resulting in debuts like those of Super Junior in 2005, which combined multilingual tracks with elaborate staging.^[7] Critics note the stage's factory-like efficiency fosters uniformity but has driven SM's global success, with exported content generating billions in revenue by 2020.^[9] This contrasts with less systematized models, as Lee's system treats production as an engineering discipline, yielding reproducible outcomes over artistic improvisation.^[5]

Marketing and Management

The marketing and management stage represents the culminating phase of cultural technology, emphasizing the strategic distribution, promotion, and sustained oversight of artists and content to achieve global dissemination and career longevity. This stage operationalizes the outputs from prior phases—casting, training, and production—by establishing distribution networks, forging international partnerships, and implementing artist management protocols designed to adapt to market dynamics and fan preferences. According to SM Entertainment's framework, it systematizes promotion as a codified process, enabling scalable expansion beyond domestic markets into regions like Europe and the United States.^[10] Key processes include partnering with global distributors for logistical support in content release, merchandising, and promotional campaigns, which facilitate broader accessibility and revenue generation. For example, SM has collaborated with entities like Alibaba to streamline album distribution, merchandise sales, and e-commerce integration, simplifying consumer access in key markets such as China.^[5] Management practices prioritize data-informed decision-making, including trend analysis and fan engagement metrics, to schedule tours, media appearances, and releases that sustain artist relevance amid evolving global tastes.^[5] This phase also incorporates digital platforms for direct fan interaction, such as SMTOWN's ecosystem, which supports content aggregation, live streaming, and merchandise fulfillment to foster community loyalty and amplify promotional reach. By 2021, SM's integrated approach across these elements contributed to diversified revenue streams, with distribution and management activities forming a core component of operations generating over 23 billion South Korean won in related segments.^[7] The emphasis on globalization in this stage has historically driven Hallyu expansion, positioning K-pop as a vehicle for cultural export and economic impact through targeted, multi-channel strategies.^[10]

Historical Development

Origins in SM Entertainment (1990s–2000s)

SM Entertainment, established by Lee Soo-man in 1995 following his earlier founding of SM Studio in 1989, pioneered the idol production system that became known as cultural technology, a structured methodology encompassing talent scouting, rigorous training, content production, and strategic promotion.^[7] Influenced by observations of U.S. music videos and Japanese idol groups during his studies abroad in the 1980s, Lee sought to industrialize Korean pop music creation, shifting from ad-hoc artist development to a factory-like process aimed at producing polished, marketable performers.^[17] This approach emphasized early-age recruitment—often of preteens or teenagers—and multi-year training regimens in vocals, choreography, etiquette, and foreign languages to foster versatility and global appeal.^[18] The system's origins trace to the mid-1990s, with initial implementation through the debut of boy group H.O.T. on September 7, 1996, whose members underwent SM's inaugural boot-camp-style program, including synchronized dance routines and fan-engagement tactics that generated massive domestic hysteria, selling over 1.5 million copies of their debut album We Hate All Kinds of Violence.^[3] Lee formalized elements of this process in a late-1990s manual on "cultural technology" (CT), which outlined operational stages to replicate success systematically, prioritizing data-driven selection and skill-building over innate talent alone.^[17] Subsequent acts like girl group S.E.S. (debut 1997) and Shinhwa (debut 1998) refined the model, incorporating visual styling and multimedia tie-ins to dominate the Korean market amid the 1997 Asian financial crisis.^[19] Into the 2000s, SM expanded CT's scope for international viability, debuting TVXQ in 2003 with members trained in Japanese for Asian markets, achieving over 200,000 debut sales in Korea and early Japan breakthroughs.^[3] Super Junior's 2005 launch introduced a rotational subunit concept, testing CT's adaptability for longevity and diversification, while training durations averaged 3–5 years, with investments exceeding millions per group in facilities and instructors.^[18] This era solidified SM's market share, with revenues surpassing competitors through CT's emphasis on replicable formulas over individual artistry, enabling exports to China and Southeast Asia by mid-decade.^[19]

Implementation and Refinement (2010s)

In the 2010s, SM Entertainment intensified the implementation of its cultural technology framework by expanding global casting efforts, conducting regular auditions in over 15 countries to diversify trainee pools and incorporate international talent into the training pipeline.^[20] This refinement addressed earlier limitations in domestic-focused recruitment, enabling the production of idols with multilingual capabilities and cross-cultural appeal, as evidenced by the integration of Chinese members in groups like EXO, which debuted in 2012 with parallel Korean (EXO-K) and Mandarin (EXO-M) subunits tailored to specific markets.^[21]^[19] The subunit strategy represented a causal adaptation to regional linguistic and consumer preferences, boosting initial sales—EXO's debut album XOXO sold over 1 million copies in South Korea alone within months—while testing scalability in the core operational stages of training and production.^[22] A key refinement came in 2013 with the launch of the SM Rookies program, a pre-debut initiative that systematized trainee evaluation by publicly showcasing select candidates through media appearances, online content, and live events, allowing real-time feedback to iterate on training regimens.^[23] Unlike prior opaque training phases, this approach refined the selection process by gauging market viability early, with participants undergoing intensified modules in vocals, dance, and performance while building fan anticipation; the first Rookies cohort contributed to debuts like Red Velvet in 2014.^[24] Internal manuals codifying Lee Soo-man's cultural technology principles further standardized these stages across departments, reducing dependency on individual oversight and enhancing reproducibility.^[25] By mid-decade, formal institutionalization occurred with Lee Soo-man's establishment of Culture Technology Group Asia in May 2015, a music publishing entity dedicated to advancing CT methodologies beyond SM's core operations, including rights management and content adaptation for global export. This move supported refinements in marketing and management by aligning intellectual property strategies with the evolving system, as seen in heightened localization efforts that propelled groups like Girls' Generation into Japanese markets from 2010 onward, generating revenues exceeding ¥10 billion from related activities by 2015.^[26] These developments empirically validated the framework's adaptability, with SM's market share in South Korea's music industry reaching approximately 20% by the late 2010s through data-driven iterations on trainee throughput and debut timing.^[27]

Evolution and Key Projects

SM Station Initiative

The SM Station Initiative, launched by SM Entertainment in February 2016, represents a digital music project structured around weekly single releases to accelerate content experimentation and artist promotion.^[28] Announced on January 27, 2016, during the "SMTOWN: New Culture Technology 2016" presentation by founder Lee Soo-man, it aimed to deliver one digital track every Friday, targeting a full year of 52 releases to test innovative sounds and collaborations.^[29] This approach integrated with SM's broader cultural technology framework by enabling rapid prototyping in the production stage, allowing data from digital platforms to inform iterative refinements in music creation and marketing.^[30] Central to the initiative's design was fostering collaborations, both among SM artists and with external producers, composers, and non-SM talents, to generate unpredictable musical outputs beyond traditional group albums.^[31] Initial seasons emphasized solo debuts and genre experiments, such as the first release on February 3, 2016, followed by tracks blending K-pop with EDM and indie elements.^[32] Subsequent phases evolved into themed seasons, including a collaboration-focused edition starting August 10, 2018, with Taeyeon and Melomance's "Page 0," and a third season commencing November 20, featuring UNICEF-tied charity singles by artists like BoA and Suho.^[30] By 2020, the project had produced over 100 tracks, prioritizing digital distribution to gauge real-time audience response and minimize risks associated with full-scale album investments.^[30] In practice, SM Station facilitated the elevation of underutilized SM affiliates, such as composers and rookie vocalists, while enabling cross-label partnerships that broadened K-pop's stylistic range.^[33] Notable outcomes included viral hits that boosted streaming metrics and informed subsequent group comebacks, though not all releases achieved commercial parity, reflecting the initiative's experimental ethos over guaranteed uniformity.^[33] This velocity of output—averaging one track weekly across seasons—underscored SM's cultural technology emphasis on scalable, feedback-driven content cycles, contrasting slower traditional release models and contributing to the label's adaptation to digital consumption trends.^[30]

NCT and New Culture Technology

NCT, an acronym for Neo Culture Technology, is a multinational boy band project launched by SM Entertainment in 2016 as a core component of the company's New Culture Technology strategy, which emphasizes modular, expandable idol group structures to facilitate global cultural localization.^[7] This approach, envisioned by SM founder Lee Soo-man, diverges from traditional fixed-member K-pop groups by incorporating principles of openness and scalability, allowing for unlimited member additions, subunit formations, and market-specific adaptations without a permanent full-group configuration.^[9] Lee Soo-man first detailed the NCT concept during his January 27, 2016, presentation at SMTOWN Coex Artium, titled "SMTOWN: New Culture Technology 2016," where he outlined it as a vehicle for Hallyu expansion through localized subunits targeting regions like Seoul, Tokyo, and beyond.^[34] The project's structure revolves around rotational and fixed subunits, enabling flexible content production and artist deployment. NCT U, the inaugural rotational subunit, debuted on April 4, 2016, with the single "The 7th Sense," featuring seven members selected for specific tracks to showcase versatility.^[5] NCT 127 followed on July 7, 2016, as a fixed Seoul-based unit initially comprising seven members (Taeil, Johnny, Taeyong, Yuta, Doyoung, Jaehyun, and Mark), with expansions to ten members by 2017 through additions like Haechan, Jungwoo, and Johnny's full integration.^[9] NCT Dream, targeting younger audiences, debuted as a seven-member subunit on August 25, 2016, with "Chewing Gum," later evolving into a fixed unit with ten members by 2020 after graduating older members like Mark.^[9] WayV, the China-focused subunit, launched in January 2019 under SM's Label V subsidiary with six members (Kun, Ten, WinWin, Xiaojun, Hendery, and YangYang), promoting primarily in Chinese markets due to regulatory constraints.^[9] As of 2023, NCT encompasses 23 active members across these and occasional full-project units like NCT 2018 (18 members) and NCT 2020 (23 members), though the unlimited expansion ideal has largely stabilized into semi-independent subunit operations.^[7] New Culture Technology, as applied through NCT, builds on Lee Soo-man's earlier Cultural Technology model by integrating digital platforms, experimental content like SM Station, and localization tactics to create a "cultural operating system" for K-pop dissemination.^[5] This framework prioritizes systematic content creation—encompassing casting, training, production, and exportation stages—to produce adaptable cultural exports, with NCT serving as the experimental flagship for testing multi-unit dynamics and international appeal.^[9] By 2020, subunits had achieved milestones such as NCT 127's U.S. chart entries and WayV's domestic Chinese successes, validating the model's viability for cross-border scalability despite challenges in maintaining conceptual cohesion amid subunit autonomy.^[34] The initiative reflects SM's shift from stage-centric artistry to technology-driven cultural engineering, aiming to embed K-pop as a modular, replicable global phenomenon.^[7]

Three Stages of Globalization

SM Entertainment founder Lee Soo-man articulated a three-stage framework for globalization within the company's cultural technology strategy, emphasizing a sequential progression from unilateral export to collaborative and integrated global production of entertainment content. This approach, first detailed publicly in 2011, builds on domestic success in Korea to systematically penetrate and adapt to international markets, particularly Asia and the West, by leveraging K-pop idols, music, and performances. The stages prioritize scalable content creation while adapting to local tastes, with empirical success measured by chart performance, concert attendance, and revenue from overseas markets exceeding 50% of SM's total by the late 2010s.^[35]^[36]^[37] The first stage focuses on the exportation of cultural products developed entirely by Korean creators and artists to overseas audiences, establishing initial footholds without significant localization. This phase capitalized on the Hallyu wave's momentum, with artists like BoA entering the Japanese market in 2001 through her debut album Listen to My Heart, which sold over 1 million copies and topped Oricon charts, and TVXQ (known as DBSK in Japan) following in 2005 with their single "Hug," achieving multi-platinum sales and marking the first foreign act to headline Tokyo Dome in 2009. These efforts generated substantial revenue—TVXQ alone contributed over ¥100 billion (approximately $900 million USD) in Japan by 2010—while introducing standardized K-pop elements like synchronized choreography and multimedia promotion to receptive Asian markets.^[35]^[36] In the second stage, SM shifts to international collaborations, partnering with local talent and producers in target regions to co-create content that resonates culturally while retaining core K-pop attributes. Exemplified by Kangta's 2006 duo project Kangta & Vanness with Taiwanese singer Vanness Wu, which released the album Synergy and topped charts in Taiwan and Korea, this approach fosters market-specific adaptations, such as incorporating Mandarin elements or regional promotion strategies. Broader implementations include joint ventures like SM's Japanese subsidiary in 2000 for localized releases and collaborations in China, contributing to groups like Super Junior's Mandarin subunit Super Junior-M debuting in 2008 with over 2 million album sales in Asia. This stage mitigates cultural barriers, evidenced by SM's Asian revenue surging to 40% of total by 2012, through hybrid productions that blend Korean training rigor with local appeal.^[35]^[37] The third stage entails full globalization, involving worldwide cooperation to produce stars and content unbound by national origins, aiming for a universally recognized "made by SM" brand. Lee Soo-man described this as cooperating "with people all over the world… to produce a star capable of succeeding worldwide," shifting toward multicultural ensembles and global production teams. Initiatives like NCT, launched in 2016 with subunits tailored to markets (e.g., NCT 127 for Seoul, WayV for China), incorporate international members—such as Canadian Mark and American Johnny—and collaborations with Western producers, yielding over 20 million monthly Spotify listeners by 2023 and arena tours in Europe and the Americas. This phase has driven SM's diversification, with global partnerships like aespa's 2020 virtual avatar integration and NFT projects, positioning the company for sustained export beyond Asia, though success metrics vary by region due to differing consumer preferences.^[35]^[36]^[37]

Modern Extensions

Digital and Metaverse Integration

SM Entertainment has extended its cultural technology framework into digital realms through the development of the SM Culture Universe (SMCU), a shared digital ecosystem launched in 2021 that integrates metaverse technologies to create immersive fan experiences beyond traditional physical performances.^[38] This initiative builds on core cultural technology principles by virtualizing idol personas and narratives, enabling persistent online interactions that amplify global reach and monetization via blockchain and virtual assets.^[7] In June 2021, SM partnered with KAIST for joint research on digital avatars tailored for virtual concerts, aiming to enhance metaverse realism and synchronize physical-digital idol embodiments.^[39] A flagship example is the girl group Aespa, debuting in November 2020 as SM's inaugural metaverse-integrated act, where each member's real-world counterpart pairs with a virtual "æ" avatar within the Kwangya digital universe—a hyper-connected virtual space central to their lore of combating digital threats like the entity Black Mamba.^[40] This hybrid model fuses cultural technology's emphasis on synchronized group dynamics and multimedia content with metaverse elements, allowing fans to engage via avatar interactions, virtual fashion, and narrative extensions across platforms like Zepeto and Spatial.^[41] Kwangya, formalized as part of SMCU, serves as a narrative hub linking SM artists, including NCT subunits, to foster cross-group storytelling and virtual events that extend cultural technology's globalization stages into immaterial, scalable domains.^[42] To operationalize these integrations, SM established Studio Kwangya in July 2022 as a dedicated metaverse content production entity, focusing on virtual human development, VR production, VFX, and music video studios to produce assets for SMCU projects.^[43] This studio has supported initiatives like joint ventures for VR concerts and avatar synchronization, with expansions into NFT-linked virtual goods by 2025, enabling cultural technology to evolve from trainee-honed physical performances to algorithm-driven, user-generated digital economies.^[44] Such advancements have positioned SM's approach as a benchmark for blending empirical fan data analytics with causal narrative design in virtual spaces, though scalability challenges persist due to technological dependencies on high-fidelity rendering and broadband access.^[45]

AI Applications in Cultural Production

SM Entertainment has integrated artificial intelligence (AI) into its cultural production processes to enhance music creation, visual content, and artist simulation, extending the principles of its "cultural technology" framework—which emphasizes systematic content generation and globalization—into digital realms. In September 2025, SM partnered with Verses AI to develop AI-generated rap music using the Rappie application, which produces lyrics, vocals, and accompanying videos from text prompts, marking an early foray into multimodal AI for K-pop-style content. This builds on earlier collaborations, such as the 2023 partnership with SK Telecom to incorporate AI tools for idol training and performance enhancement in K-pop production.^[46]^[47]^[48] Generative AI has been applied to visual elements in music videos and promotional materials, with SM utilizing it for scenes in releases by groups like RIIZE ("Impossible," 2024), Suho ("Cheese," 2024), aespa ("Armageddon," 2024), and Red Velvet, where AI simulates artist appearances or generates backgrounds to reduce production costs and enable surreal effects not feasible with traditional filming. These applications prioritize efficiency in cultural output, aligning with SM's data-driven approach to hit-making, though they have sparked debates on authenticity in idol visuals. In September 2024, SM debuted Naevis, its first solo virtual artist—initially introduced in aespa's fictional Kwangya universe—as an AI-powered entity capable of independent performances, further blurring lines between human and synthetic idols.^[49]^[50] AI extends to interactive fan engagement and virtual performances, with SM planning AI-driven music releases co-composed by human artists and virtual concerts featuring synthesized performers as of September 2025. SM founder Lee Soo-man, who originated the cultural technology concept, has advocated AI as essential for K-pop's next globalization phase, including "Zalpha Pop" tailored for Gen Z and Alpha audiences via fan-driven AI content generation. Through his post-SM venture A2O Entertainment, Lee launched AI chatbots in July 2025 enabling real-time voice interactions with virtual idol clones from group A2O May, supporting 30 languages to expand global accessibility. These tools facilitate personalized cultural experiences but raise concerns over labor displacement in creative industries, as AI automates aspects traditionally reliant on human trainees.^[51]^[52]^[18]^[53]

Impact and Achievements

Economic and Cultural Contributions

SM Entertainment's implementation of cultural technology has driven substantial economic growth for the company, with consolidated revenue reaching ₩989.73 billion in 2024, reflecting a 2.98% increase from ₩961.07 billion in 2023, largely through diversified income from music distribution, concerts, and merchandise tied to idol groups like NCT.^[54] This expansion aligns with the company's globalization efforts under cultural technology, including multi-unit projects such as NCT, which have boosted merchandise and licensing revenues by 39.6% year-over-year in Q2 2025 to ₩63.9 billion, fueled by concert tours and pop-up events.^[55] On a national scale, cultural technology's role in pioneering scalable K-pop production has contributed to the Hallyu wave's economic footprint, with related exports generating ₩19.54 trillion (approximately $14.16 billion USD) in 2023, up 5.1% from the prior year, encompassing content sales, tourism, and ancillary industries like cosmetics and fashion.^[56] Culturally, SM's cultural technology framework has facilitated the global dissemination of Korean entertainment formats, enabling the creation and export of hybrid content that integrates local and international elements, as seen in China-focused units like WayV, which exemplify strategies for cross-cultural adaptation and market penetration.^[13] This approach has elevated K-pop as a vehicle for Korean soft power, influencing global music production by standardizing trainee systems and multimedia storytelling, thereby enriching international audiences with innovative aesthetics derived from systematic content engineering.^[9] Projects under this paradigm, such as NCT's expandable unit model, have furthered cultural hybridization, promoting Korean values like discipline and collectivism alongside universal themes, which has spurred fan-driven economic spillovers including tourism surges tied to artist promotions.^[5] Overall, these contributions underscore a causal link between institutionalized cultural production and enhanced global visibility for Korean heritage, though reliant on proprietary training and IP strategies that prioritize scalability over organic artistic evolution.^[8]

Global Influence on Entertainment Industries

SM Entertainment's Cultural Technology framework has significantly shaped the global music industry's approach to artist development and content globalization by emphasizing systematic training, multicultural integration, and market-specific adaptation. This methodology, which integrates scouting, rigorous skill-building in vocals, dance, and media training, and data-informed production, enabled K-pop acts to penetrate international markets starting in the early 2000s, with exports reaching $10.4 billion in cultural content by 2019, including music that influenced hybrid genres blending Eastern and Western elements.^[57]^[5] The NCT project, launched in 2016 as an embodiment of "New Culture Technology," operationalizes globalization through three stages: local culture creation via multinational member recruitment, content curation tailored to regional tastes, and worldwide dissemination via subunits like NCT 127 (focused on Seoul's longitude) and WayV (targeting Chinese audiences). This expandable model, accommodating up to 23 members across units as of 2018, has demonstrated scalability, with NCT's strategy influencing entertainment firms to adopt flexible, localized group formations that prioritize fan interactivity and cultural hybridization over monolingual, region-locked acts.^[13]^[9] Western industries, particularly U.S. record labels, have increasingly studied K-pop's disciplined systems—rooted in Cultural Technology—for enhancing artist pipelines and monetization, as evidenced by analyses highlighting superior fan loyalty metrics and algorithmic content optimization that outperform traditional organic discovery models. For instance, K-pop's emphasis on synchronized performances and multimedia tie-ins has prompted shifts toward more engineered group dynamics in global pop, evident in collaborations like BTS's influence on Western tours and streaming strategies post-2017.^[58]^[5] This influence extends to broader entertainment sectors, where Korean agencies' public listings and venture-backed expansions—SM's market cap exceeding $5 billion by 2022—have modeled hybrid financing for content firms, challenging Hollywood's narrative control by elevating non-Western pop culture exports to rival levels, with Hallyu content comprising 1.5% of global music streams by 2021. However, adoption remains selective, as Western firms cite cultural resistance to intensive trainee regimens, limiting full replication.^[59]^[60]

Criticisms and Controversies

Trainee System and Labor Practices

The trainee system forms a core component of SM Entertainment's cultural technology framework, involving the recruitment and intensive grooming of aspiring idols from a young age to cultivate multifaceted performers capable of global appeal. Recruits, often scouted through global auditions targeting individuals aged 10 to the early 20s, undergo a selection process emphasizing raw talent in vocals, dance, and charisma, with SM conducting thousands of auditions annually to identify potentials.^[61] Once accepted, trainees enter pre-debut contracts typically lasting up to three years, during which the agency invests in comprehensive training covering singing, choreography, language skills, media etiquette, and physical conditioning.^[62] Training regimens are notoriously demanding, with daily schedules extending 12 to 15 hours, including early-morning vocal lessons, extended dance practice sessions until late night, and mandatory evaluations that determine progression or elimination. SM's approach prioritizes discipline and endurance, requiring adherence to strict rules on diet, weight maintenance (often below 47 kg for females), interpersonal conduct, and prohibitions on dating or public relationships to mold a professional image. The average training duration at SM spans three to five years, though some trainees invest over seven years before debuting, reflecting the high attrition rate where fewer than 1% of applicants ultimately succeed.^[63]^[64]^[65] Labor practices within this system have drawn scrutiny for exploitative elements, including minimal or no compensation during training—trainees often receive only stipends insufficient for living expenses, while agencies recoup multimillion-won investments in housing, meals, and instruction through future earnings, creating a debt-like obligation. Historical contracts, such as those challenged in the 2009 TVXQ lawsuit against SM, imposed 13-year terms deemed "slave contracts" by critics due to their length, restrictive clauses limiting personal freedoms, and penalties for early termination exceeding training costs. Reforms mandated by South Korea's Fair Trade Commission in 2009 capped standard idol contracts at seven years (with three-year trainee phases) and prohibited exclusive clauses beyond training recovery, yet allegations persist of SM extending effective durations to 17-18 years via renewals or addendums, particularly disadvantaging foreign trainees.^[64]^[66]^[67] These practices have been linked to severe physical and psychological tolls, with reports documenting chronic fatigue, eating disorders, and mental health crises among trainees, contributing to industry-wide issues like elevated suicide rates—exemplified by cases involving SM-affiliated artists amid grueling pre-debut pressures. While SM justifies the rigor as essential for producing competitively polished acts in a saturated market, independent analyses highlight causal links between extended unpaid labor, isolation from family, and hyper-competitive evaluations fostering burnout, with dropout rates exceeding 90%. Enforcement gaps in contract transparency and trainee welfare oversight, despite regulatory changes, underscore ongoing vulnerabilities, as evidenced by periodic lawsuits and whistleblower accounts from former trainees detailing coerced compliance and inadequate mental health support.^[66]^[63]^[68]

Cultural and Artistic Debates

Critics have accused NCT's productions of cultural appropriation, particularly in music videos and merchandise that incorporate elements from non-Korean traditions without adequate context or permission. For instance, NCT 127's 2017 "Limitless" video featured members styled in Black hairstyles and hip-hop attire, drawing backlash from Black fans for superficial borrowing without acknowledgment or collaboration credits.^[69] Similarly, an NCT 127 member appeared in a video wearing a T-shirt bearing the Confederate flag emblem from the American band Lynyrd Skynyrd, which offended viewers due to its association with racial division in U.S. history, despite fan complaints directed to SM Entertainment.^[69] Further incidents include NCT 127's 2018 track "Simon Says," which sampled elements of the Maori haka—a traditional New Zealand indigenous war chant and prayer—prompting accusations from Maori communities and New Zealand media of insensitive appropriation for commercial pop appeal.^[70] In 2020, NCT U's "Make A Wish (Birthday Song)" merchandise and video incorporated mosque-inspired designs, an ornate cube resembling the Kaaba (Islam's holiest site), and Arabic prayer text, leading Muslim fans to label it as disrespectful mockery and demand cultural education from SM.^[71] SM Entertainment's responses have typically been limited; following 2020 Black Lives Matter-related outcry, the company issued a statement affirming support for Black collaborators but admitting unfamiliarity with the discourse, which critics dismissed as performative without structural changes.^[69] Artistically, New Culture Technology's emphasis on unlimited expandability and subunit rotation has sparked debate over innovation versus coherence. Proponents view NCT as pioneering new aesthetics through diverse, technology-driven content that globalizes Korean pop elements, as articulated in SM's 2016 framework evolving from stage performances to multimedia cultural exports.^[9] However, detractors argue the model's scalability prioritizes market saturation over depth, with rotating lineups potentially undermining group synergy and long-term artistic identity, as evidenced by subunits increasingly operating autonomously despite the "Neo Culture Technology" branding introduced in 2016.^[72] This tension reflects broader K-pop concerns where commercial algorithms and fan-voting integration may favor viral experimentation over sustained narrative or musical integrity.^[73]

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