80% of Korean students failed at SIAI not due to lack of intelligence but due to deep-rooted cultural conditioning that discourages independent thought and risk-taking
The Confucian, exam-based education system promotes rote memorization over problem-solving, making students struggle in an environment that requires deep, abstract thinking
Korea’s broader economic and corporate structure reinforces a ‘safe thinking’ mindset, making it unlikely that Western-style innovation will thrive here without significant systemic change

Before going into details, pl

Not due to math knowledge, but due to difficulty applying knowledge in real-world scenarios
accustomed to structured learning, struggle more with open-ended, problem-first approaches compared to those trained in Western-style
superficial engagement, reliance on structured guidance, avoidance of ambiguity, and resistance to open-ended problem-solving
Failed in abstraction (encoding) and application (decoding)

Since 2021, the Swiss Institute of Artificial Intelligence (SIAI) has refined its approach to teaching AI and data science (DS), learning valuable

Mathematical ability differs across cultures, with Western academia emphasizing abstraction over procedural speed
AI is automating routine calculations, making conceptual thinking more valuable than ever
Future professionals must focus on logical reasoning and model formulation to stay relevant

After years of teaching here at SIAI, we have witnessed a varying cultural differences in perception of experts in AI/Data Science in the western hemisphere and in Asia.

Boot camp is for software programming without mathematical trainingMSc is a track for PhD, with in-depth scientific research written in the language of math and stat

Data Science can find correlation but not causalityIn stat, no causal but high correlation is called 'Spurious regression'Hallucinations in LLMs are repsentative examples of spurious correlation

Imagine two twin kids living in the neighborhood. One prefers to play outside day and night, while the other mostly sticks to his video games. After a year later, doctors find that the gamer boy is much healthier, thus conclude that playing outside is bad for growing children's health.