850 Billion Won for This Year's 'Autonomous Driving Technology Development Innovation Project'... 1.0974 Trillion Won by 2027
"To Commercialize Level 4, Parts, ICT, Traffic, and Service Innovation Required... Comprehensive Support"
President Moon Jae-in attending the 'Future Car Strategy Talk Show' held at Hyundai Motor Company's Ulsan plant on the morning of October 30 last year, followed by a test drive of Hyundai Mobis's autonomous driving-based shared mobility concept car, the 'M.Vision S,' together with Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun. (Image source=Yonhap News)
[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The government has decided to invest 1.0974 trillion KRW to achieve the world's first Level 4 fully autonomous driving by 2027.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Science and ICT, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the National Police Agency announced on the 14th that the four ministries will announce new tasks for this year under the pan-governmental 'Autonomous Driving Technology Development Innovation Project' on the 15th.
Infrastructure Innovation Essential to Achieve World's First Level 4
This year, 85.04 billion KRW will be invested to carry out 53 tasks. This project is jointly promoted by the four ministries to leap to the world's number one position in the future car sector, one of the big three industries including future cars, system semiconductors, and bio-health. A total of 1.0974 trillion KRW will be invested over seven years until 2027.
Major Business Contents and Support Plans in 5 Key Areas (Draft). (Data from Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy)
According to the government, Level 3 autonomous vehicles are expected to be released within the next one to two years. Level 4, which is under development with the goal of commercialization by 2027, refers to the 'fully autonomous driving' level where the vehicle independently assesses situations and does not require driver intervention in emergencies.
To reach Level 4, innovative changes are required not only in vehicles and parts but also in information and communication technology (ICT) and road traffic.
The four ministries plan to focus support on five major areas until 2027: vehicle convergence new technologies, ICT convergence new technologies, road traffic convergence new technologies, service creation, and ecosystem establishment.
Development of New Technologies such as Driving Perception Sensor Modules
First, development of 'vehicle convergence new technologies' such as autonomous driving computing technology and perception-prediction sensing technology, which are core to Level 4 autonomous vehicles, will be promoted. The technology level was 82% as of 2018, and it will be raised to over 93% in the future.
This year, 18.2 billion KRW will be initially invested in 15 tasks including core perception sensor modules, AI-based high-performance computing technology, and autonomous vehicle platforms.
Conceptual Diagram of Vehicle Convergence New Technology Development. (Source: Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy)
Efforts will also be accelerated to develop 'ICT convergence new technologies' to enhance the safety and intelligence level of Level 4 and above autonomous driving. The system must be advanced by linking high-performance cloud servers, traffic infrastructure, and computers.
This year, 21 billion KRW will be invested in 13 tasks including autonomous driving perception, judgment, and control AI software (SW) technology, and autonomous driving learning data collection and processing technology.
Additionally, ▲ road traffic convergence new technologies (20.2 billion KRW investment this year) ▲ creation of autonomous driving services such as mobility support for vulnerable groups (8.3 billion KRW investment this year) will be promoted.
Demonstration of Seven Major Autonomous Driving Services by 2027
Image of autonomous driving within the smart city envisioned by Hyundai Motor Group and Aurora. (Photo by Hyundai Motor Group)
The four ministries will develop and demonstrate seven major autonomous driving services by 2027 so that the public can tangibly experience them. Through this, they plan to increase public acceptance.
They will fully support achieving the project goal of 'establishing a foundation for commercializing converged Level 4 autonomous driving.'
They plan to design 'demand-linked tasks' that require demand companies (automobile manufacturers or core parts companies) to participate mandatorily in the technology development of supply companies (parts manufacturers, etc.).
The economic evaluation score in task selection will be raised from 30 points to 40 points. ICT sector results will be provided as open-source software so that startups, companies, and academia can freely use them.
In March, the 'Autonomous Driving Technology Development Innovation Project Group (tentative name)' will be officially launched to integrate project management and accelerate the creation of project outcomes.
A government official emphasized, "This project is one of the core projects of the Digital New Deal" and "It will be a momentum to transform the paradigm of the domestic automobile industry and road and traffic."
He added, "We will do our best to create visible project outcomes that the public can feel."
Task applications will be accepted from the 1st to the 17th of next month. Detailed task proposals (RFP) can be checked on the websites of the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology, Institute for Information & Communications Technology Planning & Evaluation, Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement, and the National Police Agency.
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