[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam National University has succeeded in attracting the Artificial Intelligence Convergence Research Center.
The city announced on the 17th that the ‘Chungnam National University Artificial Intelligence Convergence Research Center’ was finally selected in the Ministry of Science and ICT’s public contest project.
The Artificial Intelligence Convergence Research Center will be established as a graduate school where the AI department collaborates with other departments to conduct creative convergence research and education, thereby nurturing AI talent.
Fifteen universities nationwide participated in the contest, and among them, Chungnam National University, Pusan National University, Inha University, and Hanyang University ERICA were named as the final selected universities.
To attract the project, Chungnam National University proposed a plan to integrate artificial intelligence into the bio sector, a specialized industry in the Daejeon area.
In addition, the city supported the university by investing local government funds and proposing the ‘Bio-Artificial Intelligence Research Ecosystem Construction’ linked with the region.
According to the contest selection results, the Chungnam National University Artificial Intelligence Convergence Research Center will be operated with a budget of 5.1 billion KRW over the next three years, including 4.1 billion KRW in national funds, 600 million KRW in city funds, and 400 million KRW from the university’s own budget.
The AI Convergence Research Center will specialize in the bio-industry sector to cultivate interdisciplinary talents and promote the AI industry in the Daejeon-Chungcheong region. It will operate the ‘Bio AI-CAP Convergence Group’ with three specialized tracks: Bio AI-Cure Track (new drug development and genome-based companion diagnostic technology platform development), Bio AI-Animal Track (livestock precision phenotype platform development), and Bio AI-Plant Track (platform development for providing Agro-Medical Food).
During the operation period, the center will integrate various majors such as computer science, pharmacy, biology, animal science, and horticulture, selecting more than 40 talents annually (35 master’s and 5 doctoral students) starting next year, and plans to nurture a total of 100 AI convergence talents during the project period.
Along with this, the city plans to use the attraction of the AI Convergence Research Center as an opportunity to integrate AI into the overall regional bio-industry and create conditions for developing core AI technologies in cooperation with research institutes in the Daedeok Innopolis.
The city is also drawing a blueprint to establish Daejeon as a hub city for AI talent cultivation by linking with KAIST Graduate School of AI, UST (University of Science and Technology) AI education, and ETRI (Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute) AI Academy.
Moon Chang-yong, Director of the City’s Science and Industry Bureau, said, “Since the announcement of the national AI strategy last December, Daejeon has been preparing an AI strategy considering regional characteristics. The support for Chungnam National University’s AI Convergence Research Center attraction is also a fruit obtained in the same context.”
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