Before Wildfires and Accidents... Government's Public Safety Response Is Changing

R&D Strategy for Early Prediction and Rapid Response Unveiled
Top 10 Core Technologies for Public Safety Introduced

The Ministry of Science and ICT has unveiled a research and development (R&D) strategy aimed at establishing an early prediction and rapid response system to address threats to public safety such as wildfires, disasters, and crime. The ministry also released a list of the top 10 core technologies for public safety to support this initiative.

On December 16, at KT&G Sangsang Planet in Seoul, the Ministry held the 'Annual Safety Alert Program (ASAP) Challenge,' sharing the achievements of its ongoing public safety response R&D projects and gathering feedback on future directions. ASAP stands for 'Annual Safety Alert Program' and reflects the goal of leveraging science and technology to respond as quickly as possible to societal issues that threaten the lives and safety of the public, including disasters, crime, and population aging.

Event poster. Provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT

Selection and Public Release of High-TRL Achievements... Assessing Field Applicability

During the event, prototypes with a high Technology Readiness Level (TRL) from recently completed public safety response R&D projects were selected and publicly showcased. The Ministry of Science and ICT went beyond simply introducing research outcomes, connecting researcher presentations with consulting from private public-interest foundations and venture capital firms to assess the potential for commercialization and field application.

Key achievements on display included plasma resource utilization technology from the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy, a foldable stab-proof shield from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), terahertz (THz) concealed object detection equipment from the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, African swine fever monitoring and surveillance technology from Seoul National University, a smart cane for the visually impaired, and a visible 112 emergency call system. The Ministry expressed expectations that these efforts would enhance the practical applicability of R&D achievements and increase the potential for subsequent commercialization.

Public Safety Response R&D Strategy and Top 10 Core Technologies Announced

The Ministry of Science and ICT also presented a draft of its 'Public Safety Response R&D Promotion Strategy,' outlining a systematic, people-centered approach to public safety R&D. The strategy focuses on streamlining previously fragmented public safety R&D projects to improve management efficiency and expanding outcomes that the public can directly experience.

Specifically, the plan includes ▲ integration of public safety R&D projects ▲ introduction of a public participation R&D platform ▲ establishment of a dedicated professional organization to enhance management efficiency, as well as ▲ strengthening collaboration among ministries and local governments ▲ promoting private sector participation ▲ and systematizing follow-up support to ensure the dissemination of results to the field even after the R&D stage.

Additionally, the ministry introduced a draft list of the 'Top 10 Core Technologies for Public Safety,' which can be commonly applied for early prediction and rapid response to disasters and crime. These include early prediction for construction and industrial safety and disasters, micro-acoustic and hazardous gas sensing, quantum sensors, bio interfacing, CCTV analysis, large drones, wildfire head detection, energy harvesting, and technologies for radioactive contamination detection and adsorption.

These technologies are reflected as tasks in the Ministry of Science and ICT's 2026 work report and will be finalized by March of next year following further expert discussions and public feedback.

Koo Hyukchae, First Vice Minister of Science and ICT, stated, "The role of science and technology is extremely important in solving issues directly linked to the lives and safety of the public. Moving forward, we will strengthen collaboration with the private sector to promote the field application of research outcomes, and spare no effort in supporting public safety through proactive development of core technologies."