The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on September 1st (Korean time) that it will invest 1.1 trillion won ($8.2 billion) in next year’s budget for the artificial intelligence transformation of manufacturing, nearly doubling this year’s allocation. This represents a significant portion of the ministry’s total budget of 13.88 trillion won for next year. The ministry stated that it has substantially expanded related budgets to encourage active use of artificial intelligence in manufacturing sites and products to overcome the crisis facing South Korea’s manufacturing sector.
The core initiative is the ‘AI Factory Leading Project,’ which aims to revolutionize productivity by integrating AI into manufacturing. The ministry plans to pursue this project without delay to establish more than 500 AI factories by 2030. The government will invest 402.2 billion won in developing physical AI, enabling robots and automobiles to autonomously recognize external situations, make decisions, and take action. The ministry particularly aims to accelerate the development of humanoid robots capable of smooth communication and collaboration with humans, specialized for manufacturing, logistics, and construction sites, to secure world-class competitiveness.
The ministry will newly invest 157.5 billion won in developing AI application products for daily life that can be launched in the market within a short period. Through this investment, the government plans to commercialize approximately 60 AI products within the next two years. The ministry will also begin full-scale development of on-device AI semiconductors necessary for automobiles and home appliances to implement AI functions. Starting with 185.1 billion won in government funding next year, the ministry will invest approximately 997.3 billion won over the next five years to build an AI semiconductor ecosystem.
This expansion of AI transformation budget is evaluated as demonstrating the government’s strong commitment to accelerating digital transformation in manufacturing and enhancing global competitiveness. The ministry expressed expectations that this initiative will lay the foundation for South Korea’s manufacturing sector to lead the AI era.
The original article can be found at the Korea Policy Briefing.
