E5 · stress-preview.e5-kor-s02-greedy

South Korea, greedy, 10 years

100 simulations of 10 rounds from the 2026 position. South Korea decides by the greedy method; global funding seizure in year 3 at 1.2 times its load over the random background.

Model 0.2.0 · graph 0.2.0 · parameters 0.1.1 · seeds 1–100 · elasticity sampled within each bracket

Every simulation · Compare with another experiment · More experiments like this

Not a forecast
Simulations of a structural model with seed parameter values, to compare methods and test the model. Other nations stay at their 2026 ratings throughout.

Outcome across simulations

The median at 2036, with the 10th to the 90th percentile of the 100 simulations under it.

Capability index
16.90 (+0.89)
From 16.00; 16.39 to 17.31
Rank by index
2
From 6; 2 to 4
Domains at Tier 1
5
From 2; 4 to 6
Tier rank
3
From 7; 2 to 4

Capability index by round

Rank by index, by round

Every objective at the position and at the horizon
Objective202610th percentileMedian90th percentileBetter
Capability indexprimary16.0016.3916.9017.31higher
Rank by index6224lower
Tier rank7234lower
Domains at Tier 12456higher
Score sum1165.81188.71224.71257.5higher
Goal-weighted score1165.81188.71224.71257.5higher
Resilient score1165.81221.5 (mean score sum over the simulations)higher

The capability index is the mean of the three dimensions, each the mean of its domains, each the mean of its groups. Tiers are Pareto layers within each domain; the tier rank orders nations by domains held at Tier 1, then Tier 2, and so on. The goal-weighted score is the score sum unless the experiment sets a goal. The primary objective is the one the experiment is judged on; every other objective is reported beside it.

Credits

What each round’s credits went on in the median simulation. Across all simulations, build took 32 per cent, buy took 30 per cent, partner took 38 per cent of the 1,544 credits a simulation spent on actions.

Report

Written from the simulation record by the loop's narrator. Every figure names the query it came from, in square brackets.

Batch stress-preview. Model 0.2.0, graph 0.2.0, parameters 0.1.1. 100 simulations, seeds 1 to 100; probes on 25. Every figure is a distribution over simulations of a structural model with seed parameter values; it shows what the model implies under these settings, not what will happen. Other nations are frozen at their 2026 ratings. No reconstructed historical data is used in this experiment.

Headline

South Korea played 10 rounds from 2026 under the greedy method, with stress events, 100 times. Its capability index moved from 16.00 to a median of 16.90 (+0.89), with 90 per cent of simulations between 16.13 and 17.43 [experiment_objectives].

Starting position

In 2026 the nation ranks 6 on the index against the frozen field, holds 2 of nine domains at Tier 1 and has a tier rank of 7. Its base income is 1,014 credits a year, calibrated so that its 2026 position is affordable with headroom for investment.

What was decided

A simulation spent a median of 1,548 credits on actions. The five groups that took most were Technical & Vocational Skills (build, 91 credits, 5.9 per cent); Lifelong Learning & Reskilling (build, 91 credits, 5.9 per cent); Fiscal Capacity & Public Finance (partner, 91 credits, 5.9 per cent); Economic Output & Productivity (build, 84 credits, 5.4 per cent); Diplomatic Statecraft & Global Networks (partner, 74 credits, 4.8 per cent) [experiment_decisions_by_group]. By mode: buy 39 per cent, partner 32 per cent, build 29 per cent [experiment_decisions_by_group]. Concentration of spending (HHI) had a median of 0.040, and the most repeated action appeared in 30 per cent of rounds.

The leading domain by period: rounds 1 to 5, Human Capital; rounds 6 to 10, Trade & Investment [experiment_spend_by_period].

The method's chosen action was within 5 per cent of its best alternative in 88 per cent of actions and ahead by more than 25 per cent in 0 per cent [experiment_decision_margins].

What the world did

A median simulation saw 2 shocks and 1 upside events. The most damaging per firing were S03 (17 firings in 16 simulations, −32.8 points each); S01 (19 firings in 16 simulations, −24.9 points each); S07 (6 firings in 6 simulations, −23.0 points each) [experiment_shocks]. Upside events fired 76 times across all simulations [experiment_shocks].

The groups that lost most to shocks, per simulation: Investment Attraction & Projection −1.17; Fiscal Capacity & Public Finance −1.16; Monetary & Currency Capability −1.07; Labour & Employment −1.03 [experiment_shock_damage_by_group].

The edges that carried most change through the graph, per simulation: Economic Output & Productivity to Fiscal Capacity & Public Finance (+0.37 points); Fiscal Capacity & Public Finance to Social Infrastructure (+0.25 points); Economic Output & Productivity to Development Cooperation & Global Assistance (+0.20 points) [experiment_propagation_by_edge].

Where it ended

At 2036 the median rank is 2 (5th to 95th percentile 2 to 6), the median count of Tier 1 domains 5 (3 to 7) and the median tier rank 3; the resilient score, the mean score sum over simulations, is 1,222 [experiment_objectives].

Tier 1 probability changed most in: financial strength (0 to 84 per cent of simulations); information and influence (0 to 99 per cent of simulations); production and innovation (100 to 88 per cent of simulations); strategic infrastructure (0 to 33 per cent of simulations); trade and investment (0 to 100 per cent of simulations) [experiment_tiers_by_round].

Why

Without shocks the index ends +0.581 higher on average, so the shocks cost about 0.581 index points [experiment_probe_attribution].

Holding instead of following this method changes the index by −1.271: that is the method's worth against doing nothing [experiment_probe_attribution].

Removing any single one of the five largest actions changes the index by between −0.022 and −0.018, for example 2036 buy Sovereign Capital & External Financial Power (33 credits) [experiment_probe_attribution]. The largest actions by credits come late, when income is highest, and are rarely the most valuable.

Removing the largest shock of a simulation raises the index by +0.334 on average [experiment_probe_attribution].

The replay probe reproduces the simulations exactly (index change 0.000000), so the attributions are clean [experiment_probe_attribution].

Surprises

tier_jump (warn): largest gain in one domain within five years: 6 tiers (99 simulations above 2); tiers are reported, not an objective.

saturation_high (warn): 76% of simulations end with a group at 20 that did not start there (median 2 groups).

The simulation furthest from the median (seed 86) ends −1.46 from it, with 6 shocks and 1 upside events [experiment_outlier_simulations].

Comparison

Against the hold experiment for the same nation (e5-kor-s01-hold), the median index is +1.44 points apart, the median rank 2 against 8, and Tier 1 domains 5 against 0 [experiment_against_hold].

No backcast comparison: this experiment does not start from a historical position [experiment_against_history].

What each decision and shock was worth

Counterfactual probes on the first 25 seeds: the same simulations with one thing changed, paired seed by seed. A removed decision or shock is taken out and the other decisions replayed unchanged, so the difference is that item's worth.

ProbeIndexScore sumTier 1For example
Hold instead of the method−1.272−84.9−4.40
No shocks+0.581+41.7+1.24
Replay of the recorded actions (must change nothing)0.0000.00.00
Without the 1st largest decision−0.022−1.40.002036 buy Sovereign Capital & External Financial Power (33 credits)
Without the 2nd largest decision−0.020−1.40.002036 buy Sensing, Timing & Navigation (33 credits)
Without the 3rd largest decision−0.020−1.40.002036 buy Industrial & Sectoral Base (33 credits)
Without the 4th largest decision−0.018−1.40.002036 buy Biotechnology & Health Technologies (33 credits)
Without the 5th largest decision−0.018−1.40.002036 buy Robotics & Autonomous Systems (33 credits)
Without the 1st largest shock+0.334+23.3+0.722029 S02 (-16.8 points)
Without the 2nd largest shock+0.246+16.9+0.502029 S02 (-16.8 points)
Without the 3rd largest shock+0.270+18.5+0.622029 S06 (-14.1 points)

Simulations

Three simulations told round by round, each on its own page: the one nearest the median index at the horizon, and those nearest the 10th and the 90th percentile. Every one of the 100 is listed with its outcome on the simulations page.

All 100 simulations

Events

How often each shock and upside event began across the simulations. Shocks come from the ten downside scenarios and upside events from the ten upside ones, at their yearly likelihood.

Event
Kind
Simulations
Mean round
Points
Global funding seizure S02Shock100 per cent3.0−16.8
Hybrid coercion S04Shock21 per cent5.4−17.5
Breadbasket failure S06Shock20 per cent5.0−12.1
Water-efficient food leap S16Upside18 per cent5.1+12.8
Trade bloc rupture S01Shock16 per cent6.2−24.9
Regional war spillover S03Shock16 per cent5.7−32.8
AI labour shock S08Shock14 per cent6.1−21.2
Clean power threshold S15Upside13 per cent5.6+27.4
Market access opening S12Upside12 per cent4.8+15.9
Chronic disease advance S19Upside9 per cent5.8+15.2
Automated discovery step S17Upside8 per cent5.6+36.4
Core disaster S07Shock6 per cent4.7−23.0
Debt service reset S11Upside4 per cent6.5+1.6
Great-power détente S13Upside4 per cent6.8+26.0
Legitimacy rupture S05Shock4 per cent3.5−10.2
Outbreak defence succeeds S20Upside4 per cent5.2+35.3
Middle East settlement S14Upside1 per cent4.0+18.9
Public service leap S18Upside1 per cent3.0+14.5

Groups across simulations

Every capability group: its position, and its median and spread at the horizon across the simulations, with what the method spent on it.

73 of 73 groups

Capability group
Domain
2026
2036
Change
Levels invested
Credits
Development Cooperation & Global AssistanceInformation & Influence14.5019.95 18.40 to 20.00+5.455.2189
Technical & Vocational SkillsHuman Capital15.5020.00 19.91 to 20.00+4.507.1991
Lifelong Learning & ReskillingHuman Capital16.0019.99 19.86 to 20.00+3.996.4591
Diplomatic Statecraft & Global NetworksInformation & Influence14.5018.09 17.49 to 19.09+3.593.9874
Economic Leverage & DependenceTrade & Investment15.3318.65 17.77 to 19.20+3.323.8764
Digital & AI CompetenceHuman Capital17.0020.00 19.86 to 20.00+3.003.4161
Sovereign Capital & External Financial PowerFinancial Strength14.2017.13 16.54 to 17.55+2.933.2665
Economic Output & ProductivityProduction & Innovation16.5019.37 18.77 to 19.75+2.873.5485
Information Environment & Strategic CommunicationInformation & Influence15.6718.53 16.50 to 19.04+2.862.8454
Artificial IntelligenceCritical Technology16.0018.84 18.23 to 19.08+2.842.8656
Alliances & Security CooperationInformation & Influence16.0018.61 18.19 to 19.40+2.612.8940
Research Talent & Knowledge CreationHuman Capital16.0018.51 18.25 to 18.87+2.512.4570
Advanced EducationHuman Capital17.0019.43 19.14 to 19.76+2.432.5461
Investment Attraction & ProjectionTrade & Investment16.3318.73 18.17 to 19.32+2.403.2560
Fiscal Capacity & Public FinanceFinancial Strength16.5018.76 17.86 to 19.08+2.262.7192
Digital & Services TradeTrade & Investment16.2518.49 17.61 to 19.55+2.242.7749
Trade Policy & Market AccessTrade & Investment17.0018.82 18.20 to 19.47+1.822.0832
Connectivity, Cyber & Trust TechnologiesCritical Technology16.6018.26 17.90 to 18.79+1.661.8634
Biotechnology & Health TechnologiesCritical Technology16.2017.68 16.00 to 18.17+1.481.1326
Resource InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure11.7513.18 11.28 to 13.78+1.431.2527
Sensing, Timing & NavigationCritical Technology15.8017.18 16.75 to 17.65+1.381.5032
Culture, Language & Education DiplomacyInformation & Influence16.8018.17 16.16 to 18.46+1.370.9721
Global Value Chain PositionTrade & Investment17.3318.56 17.97 to 19.31+1.231.7736
Export Capability & SophisticationTrade & Investment17.0018.21 17.50 to 18.77+1.211.8133
Foundational EducationHuman Capital17.2518.34 18.07 to 19.17+1.091.3233
Technology Adoption & DiffusionProduction & Innovation18.0019.03 18.35 to 19.38+1.031.1025
Trade Facilitation & LogisticsTrade & Investment17.5018.52 17.75 to 19.12+1.021.6734
Industrial & Sectoral BaseProduction & Innovation16.5017.50 16.76 to 18.03+1.001.3833
Labour & EmploymentProduction & Innovation15.0015.90 13.81 to 16.71+0.900.9218
Robotics & Autonomous SystemsCritical Technology16.5016.98 16.10 to 18.05+0.480.5513
Quantum TechnologiesCritical Technology14.2514.33 13.93 to 14.84+0.080.000
Force Generation & MobilisationNational Security16.3316.37 15.90 to 16.67+0.040.000
Social InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure17.0017.04 16.40 to 17.65+0.040.000
Intelligence & AssessmentNational Security15.8315.85 15.12 to 16.22+0.020.000
Energy TechnologiesCritical Technology16.6016.60 16.05 to 17.780.000.143
Advanced ManufacturingStrategic Infrastructure18.4018.39 17.83 to 18.88−0.010.000
Nuclear DeterrenceNational Security1.671.65 1.54 to 1.97−0.020.000
Advanced Materials & ManufacturingCritical Technology16.7116.68 16.23 to 17.66−0.030.154
Transport InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure16.5016.46 15.63 to 17.01−0.040.000
Cyber & Electromagnetic OperationsNational Security16.0015.95 15.20 to 16.24−0.050.000
Innovation & CommercialisationProduction & Innovation18.0017.95 17.44 to 18.45−0.050.000
Water, Sanitation & Waste InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure16.8016.73 16.00 to 17.23−0.070.000
Space, Aerospace & Defence InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure16.3316.25 15.69 to 17.53−0.080.144
Air PowerNational Security16.7516.67 16.16 to 16.98−0.080.000
Joint Command, Projection & SustainmentNational Security15.3315.25 14.26 to 15.43−0.080.000
Communications & Digital InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure18.0017.91 17.46 to 18.52−0.090.206
Strategic Strike & Missile DefenceNational Security16.0015.88 14.91 to 16.04−0.120.000
Semiconductors & Advanced ComputingCritical Technology17.5017.38 16.87 to 18.02−0.120.000
Land PowerNational Security16.5016.38 15.85 to 16.68−0.120.000
Maritime PowerNational Security16.0015.87 14.86 to 16.03−0.130.000
Population HealthHuman Capital16.0015.87 15.50 to 16.25−0.130.000
Energy InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure16.1315.99 14.90 to 16.54−0.140.000
Early Childhood DevelopmentHuman Capital17.0016.86 16.50 to 17.25−0.140.000
National Resilience & Crisis ManagementGovernance & Integrity16.2016.06 15.50 to 16.62−0.140.000
Space TechnologiesCritical Technology14.6714.52 14.11 to 15.00−0.150.072
Space OperationsNational Security13.6713.52 12.98 to 13.81−0.150.000
Regulatory Governance & Strategic ControlsGovernance & Integrity16.3316.16 15.76 to 17.12−0.170.000
Health System CapabilityHuman Capital16.6716.50 16.14 to 17.06−0.170.010
Political Institutions & Civic ParticipationGovernance & Integrity16.0015.82 15.41 to 16.28−0.180.000
Justice System & Fundamental RightsGovernance & Integrity15.0014.82 14.52 to 15.30−0.180.000
Transparency, Oversight & AccountabilityGovernance & Integrity15.3315.15 14.85 to 15.58−0.180.000
Internal Security & OrderGovernance & Integrity15.6715.48 15.00 to 15.96−0.190.000
Agriculture & Food InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure15.7515.55 14.82 to 16.05−0.200.000
Public Integrity & Anti-CorruptionGovernance & Integrity15.0014.80 14.49 to 15.27−0.200.000
Diaspora & Global CommunitiesInformation & Influence15.5015.20 14.76 to 15.54−0.300.000
Government Effectiveness & Public AdministrationGovernance & Integrity17.2016.88 16.29 to 17.62−0.320.000
Financial InfrastructureStrategic Infrastructure16.5016.16 15.50 to 17.94−0.340.6715
Structural Transformation & ComplexityProduction & Innovation16.6716.32 15.78 to 16.83−0.350.031
Business Dynamism & EntrepreneurshipProduction & Innovation15.7515.35 14.75 to 17.16−0.400.4510
Monetary & Currency CapabilityFinancial Strength16.3315.70 14.87 to 16.06−0.630.000
Financial System Depth & AccessFinancial Strength17.0016.32 15.62 to 16.69−0.680.000
Financial Regulation & IntegrityFinancial Strength15.7515.05 14.52 to 15.37−0.700.000
Financial Stability & Crisis ManagementFinancial Strength16.6715.94 15.38 to 16.25−0.730.000

Checks

The automated checks run on this experiment before anything was written about it. A warning is a candidate finding for the improvement loop.

  • passcredits_conservedlargest gap between credits in and credits accounted for: 4.5e-13
  • passscores_in_boundsscores range 1.390 to 20.000
  • passno_nans0 missing values in the trajectory and objectives
  • passprobe_replay_reproducesthe recorded actions played back reproduce the simulation to within 0.0e+00 points (25 simulations)
  • passledger_balancesthe edge ledger sums to the propagated change to within 9.6e-07 points
  • passmove_without_shocklargest one-round change in a group with no shock landing: 2.50 points; 0% of simulations have one above 3
  • warntier_jumplargest gain in one domain within five years: 6 tiers (99 simulations above 2); tiers are reported, not an objective
  • passall_tier1_from_outside_top10starting rank 6; 0 simulations reach Tier 1 in all nine domains
  • warnsaturation_high76% of simulations end with a group at 20 that did not start there (median 2 groups)
  • passsaturation_low0% of simulations end with a group at 0 that did not start there (median 0 groups)
  • passspend_concentrationmedian concentration of spending across groups (HHI) 0.040; most funded group soft.information_and_influence.development_cooperation_and_global_assistance
  • passsame_actionthe most repeated action (group and mode) appears in a median 30% of rounds

Settings and versions

Experiment stress-preview.e5-kor-s02-greedy. Every simulation records the model, graph and parameter versions, the scenario, the method and its seed, so it can be reproduced exactly.

Nation
South Korea (KOR)
Position
The 2026 ratings of the National Capability Index
Method
Greedy. Each round, the actions with the most value per credit: a level's own worth plus its long-run effect downstream through the graph, less the maintenance it will need, counting only what arrives before the horizon.
Scenario
Global funding seizure in year 3 at 1.2 times its load over the random background
Objective
Capability index, the primary objective the experiment is judged on; every other objective is reported beside it
Horizon
10 rounds, 2026 to 2036
Simulations
100 seeds, 1 to 100. Every method in the batch faces the same draws for the same seed.
Graph elasticities
Drawn for each simulation, uniformly within each edge’s bracket
Income
Base credits 1,014.1 a round, moving with the economic groups
Versions
Model 0.2.0, Capability Dependency Graph 0.2.0, parameters 0.1.1
Batch
Stress test preview (stress-preview)
Runtime
4.4 seconds in all; 1252 microseconds a round
Not a forecast
Every figure is a distribution over the simulations of a structural model, reported to compare methods and test the model. None is a prediction of what a nation will do or become.
Structural parameters
Costs, decay, vulnerability and credits are structural seed values with low or medium confidence, set by domain with single-group exceptions. Five groups have no defensible value in a single-nation model and are flagged in the parameter tables.
Other nations are frozen
One nation is simulated at a time. Every other nation stays at its 2026 rating, so rank and tiers are measured against a still field; where the simulated nation rises past others their own tiers are not re-sorted.
Starting depth and mode are defaults
The position is the National Capability Index ratings. How institutionalised each capability is, and how much was built, bought or partnered, have no data behind them yet and start from structural defaults.
Credits are calibrated, not measured
Each nation’s income is set so that its position is affordable with headroom that rises with its fiscal capacity. It is not yet fiscal capacity as a share of GDP.