Korea unveils 1st defense AI center to power next-generation combat systems

The Korea Times - Oct 12, 2026

The Ministry of National Defense inaugurated a physical artificial intelligence (AI) research center Monday at Pangyo Techno Valley — a sprawling high-tech hub south of Seoul often hailed as Korea's Silicon Valley for its heavy concentration of tech giants, startups, and advanced research facilities. The opening marks the start of an ambitious national project to train humanoid robots and autonomous machines for high-risk military missions, such as mine clearance, explosive ordnance disposal and hazardous chemical reconnaissance. Led by Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul, the launch event brought together roughly 150 officials from government agencies, academic institutions and defense industries, including representatives from the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Presidential National AI Committee. Operated in partnership with Ajou University, the Pangyo facility is the first of five specialized regional defense AI hubs planned across the nation. While Pangyo will focus on hardware-software integration — collecting physical operational data to train humanoid and multilegged robots

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