Diplomacy Journal shJung 기자 | The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will implement an industrial infrastructure development project worth KRW 268.5 billion this year to support the development and rapid commercialization of ultra-gap technologies through facility and equipment construction projects.

This is the largest-ever initiative, and it aims to support the technological independence and competitiveness of our industries amidst the rapidly evolving global technological competition.

The Industrial Equipment Installation Project supports equipment needed for testing, evaluation, certification, demonstration, and testbed construction by Korean companies and research institutes.

It also supports non-profit organizations, such as universities and research institutes, to install and share equipment that individual companies or research institutes find difficult to invest in independently due to financial constraints.

To achieve this, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has selected 28 new projects (KRW 28 billion), an increase of 12 from last year, and plans to allocate 40% of the new budget to building artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. This will expand AI facilities and equipment infrastructure that can be immediately deployed in manufacturing settings, laying the foundation for Korea's leap forward as an AI powerhouse.

Furthermore, starting with new projects this year, the establishment of shared research spaces will be mandated at research-based centers nationwide.

This measure aims to foster collaboration among industry, academia, and research institutes in cutting-edge technologies such as AI, semiconductors, and secondary batteries. It aims to foster collaboration between small and medium-sized enterprises, universities, and research institutes, and to provide practical support for technological innovation and accelerated commercialization.

Meanwhile, to support customized infrastructure development centered on field needs, the government will also pursue initiatives such as the "Research-Based Advanced Infrastructure Development," which supports the upgrade and maintenance of aging equipment at self-sufficient centers with a proven track record of shared research equipment use.

The government will also pursue the "AI Autonomous Laboratory Infrastructure Development," which predicts results through virtual experiments and supports autonomous experiments from experimental planning to results generation.

This year's Industrial Innovation Infrastructure Development Project announcement will be divided into three rounds, with nine projects selected through the first announcement on January 27th. Further details can be found on the websites of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (www.motir.go.kr) and the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (www.kiat.or.kr).
 

Choi Yeon-woo, Director General of Industrial Technology Convergence Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated, "To gain an edge in the rapidly evolving cutting-edge technology landscape, such as the AI revolution, preemptively securing research facilities and equipment is paramount."

"We will actively support our companies' response to new technologies through the Industrial Innovation Infrastructure Establishment Project, which establishes and supports the use of shared infrastructure essential for industrial technology development, which is difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises to build on their own."