The South Korean government plans to implement 600 research and development (R&D) projects using artificial intelligence (AI) by 2030. This initiative involves the development of AI-based research design solutions to enhance industrial applications and supporting the automation of data preprocessing systems. On October 17, at the Korea Tire Pangyo Technoplex, Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy, Ahn Duk-geun, chaired the third Industrial Digital Transformation Committee meeting, where they unveiled the ‘AI+R&DI Initiative Strategy’.
This strategy serves as a follow-up to the industrial AI transition plan announced last month by the National AI Committee. Additionally, it is one of the six AI utilization strategies outlined by the ‘AI Era New Industry Policy Committee’, which was established in May. The ‘AI+R&DI Initiative Strategy’ aims to integrate AI into industrial R&D and innovation processes to reduce time and costs while maximizing outcomes.
Key components of the strategy include actively supporting the integration of AI technology in R&D design and experimental stages, promoting 60 R&D projects step by step until 2030, and investing in all new R&D tasks under the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy by 2032. The government also plans to analyze patents, papers, and experimental data to develop AI-based research design solutions that will be disseminated across industrial fields. The goal is to create 100 research design solutions by 2030, benefiting industries such as semiconductors, biotechnology, and secondary batteries.
Additionally, the strategy involves expanding material data in sectors with high enterprise demand, like materials, doubling it by 2026, and establishing AI autonomous laboratories that automate experiments and analyze data in real time. The government plans to introduce 500 such AI autonomous laboratories by 2030, improving research efficiency.
To expedite the strategy’s dissemination, the government will establish the ‘AI+R&DI Track’ and improve R&D systems. A ‘Tech-GPT Platform’ will be developed to explore global innovation resources like technology and talent through AI, with the platform service launching by late next year. By 2028, public and private sectors will invest 16.1 billion won collectively in this initiative.
The strategy also emphasizes the creation of a ‘Tech-GPT Store’ to activate online services provided by domestic and foreign expert firms, enhancing the professional service ecosystem involving intellectual property strategy development and supply chain analysis.
Moreover, AI will be fully applied to every phase of government R&D projects to increase convenience and complement expertise, implementing an ‘AI Assistant’ gradually from next year to assist companies and researchers with administrative tasks. This will include writing business proposal drafts, managing research data, submitting result reports, and classifying research fund documentation, available 24/7 through chatbot consultations.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy also aims to provide various support measures necessary for promoting business-level AI usage through the ‘Industrial Data Utilization Activation Plan’ announced on the same day. Minister Ahn emphasized that “AI is now a key tool for technological innovation and a game-changer that will drive a paradigm shift across the industry,” and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to fundamentally transforming the industrial landscape through AI.