Outlines of Digital Transformations in South Korea, Japan, and China: Challenges, Opportunities, and Risks

The digitalization of public administration and the digital economy in both developed and developing countries is becoming one of the key factors of state sovereignty and stability, providing the technological and informational foundation for the effectiveness of domestic and foreign policy, as well as national security. The article examines the processes of digitalizing of public administration and promoting of Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and other innovations in the digital economy using the examples of three leading East Asian countries – South Korea, Japan, and China. Based on a selective analysis of individual digital components of national digital models, the author identifies the key elements of digitalization in these countries and analyzes their level and efficiency, along with the special features and “bottlenecks” characteristic of each model. Methodologically, most digital projects can be reduced to the concept of “state digital platforms” (SDPs), the evaluation criteria of which include reducing the costs of state regulation, dynamically updating and analyzing of digital profiles and related functions. By projecting general and specialized indices onto the digital realities of the aforementioned states, the article determines the “digital position” of each among the three economic leaders of East Asia.