Establishment of 'Pohang AI Accelerator Center'... Domestic Experts Invited for Roundtable Meeting

Role in AI Technology Development and Talent Training, 'Pohang AI Accelerator Center' Construction Meeting

Mayor Lee Kangdeok: "Securing AI Infrastructure and Talent... Will Lead the Digital Industry"

Pohang City in North Gyeongsang Province held a consultation meeting on the 10th to discuss the establishment of the 'Pohang AI Accelerator Center,' which will play a key role in next-generation GPU server-powered AI technology development and research, business incubation, and talent cultivation.

On the 10th, Pohang City held an advisory meeting for the establishment of the Pohang AI Accelerator Center in the medium conference room of Pohang City Hall.

The meeting, presided over by Mayor Lee Kangdeok, was attended both online and offline by leading domestic AI experts, including Professor Do Jaeyoung of Seoul National University, Lee Sanggeun, Head of the AI Education and Research Group at Korea University, Yoo Hwanjo, Deputy Director of POSTECH AI Research Institute, Professor Jung Jaewoong of KAIST, Kim Injoong, Head of Handong Global University AI Research Group, Kim Beomjun, Executive Director of Naver AI, Jo Geumwon, Director of the KIT Supercomputer Center, and Kang Hongsik, Director of Pohang Accelerator Laboratory.

This meeting was convened as major big tech companies such as Meta, Google, and Microsoft are racing to adopt high-performance computers, with the core AI computing resource, GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), becoming a crucial competitive factor for domestic and international companies. Mayor Lee Kangdeok emphasized the need for Pohang to secure a leading position in regional AI accelerator infrastructure.

The meeting began with POSTECH and Handong Global University, the two pillars of local AI talent development, sharing AI trends and the current state of regional infrastructure. This was followed by a Naver partner company presenting insights on domestic and international AI trends and recommendations for AI infrastructure structure and support directions.

AI strategy proposals for the region included digital and AI transformation (AX/DX) support projects to address current issues in existing base industries, AI application specialization projects linked to Pohang's four major innovation zones?battery, bio, education, and opportunity development?and the establishment of a new Handong Global University AI graduate school focused on industrial innovation, following the research-oriented POSTECH AI graduate school.

In anticipation of the explosive increase in demand for AI talent, Pohang City has been concentrating administrative resources early on to support infrastructure and talent development for AI proliferation.

Major projects include: ▲ the 'Smart Factory Distribution Project' to expand and establish intelligent automated factories across all stages of AI-based product manufacturing; ▲ support for 'Apple Manufacturing R&D Support Center' and 'Industrial DX Collaboration Support Center Operation' to assist AI-based DX in manufacturing; and ▲ research on a D.N.A (Data, Network, AI)-based safety diagnosis platform for hazardous environments in manufacturing.

Additionally, the city is striving to build future manufacturing innovation models by integrating next-generation AI technologies, such as AI-multimodal (multimodal) human cognition-augmentation technologies to overcome human cognitive and intelligence limits and disabilities, construction of steel and industrial DX demonstration centers, demonstration and expansion of ultra-large AI cloud farms, and establishment of AI convergence foundations in manufacturing.

Furthermore, Pohang is actively promoting talent development support projects, including ▲ support for the POSTECH Graduate School of Artificial Intelligence ▲ training of specialized industrial AI manufacturing innovation personnel ▲ and the 'SW-Centered University Fostering Project' in collaboration with Handong Global University to nurture field-ready AI industry talent.

Efforts are also being made to ensure citizens can easily and conveniently utilize and understand AI, such as by establishing and operating a 'Citizen Practical AI Education Platform,' focusing on making AI central to the digital transformation era in local communities.

Mayor Lee Kangdeok stated, "As Pohang is a city where traditional and new industries coexist, we expect a robust supply and demand for future AI. In the race for AI transformation, we will do our utmost to secure related infrastructure and talent so that Pohang can develop as a leading local city model driving Korea's digital and AI industry."

Pohang City plans to prepare a feasibility study and national funding projects for the establishment of the Pohang AI Accelerator Center based on the expert recommendations from this meeting.