The South Korean government has launched the second phase of the Physical AI Alliance, an industry-academia-research-government consultative body aimed at securing technological sovereignty in physical AI, announcing plans to reinvent it from a policy discussion-centered body into an "execution-focused cooperation platform" that supports everything from technology development to industrial field application.
The Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) held the "Physical AI Alliance Phase 2 Launch Ceremony" at The Plaza Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday, unveiling its restructuring direction and expanded operation plans. The event was attended by about 200 people, including Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon, National Assembly members, and officials from industry, academia and research.
The first phase, launched in September last year, served as the starting point for public-private cooperation in the physical AI field, focusing on identifying demand and difficulties at industrial sites and deriving policy tasks. The newly launched second phase will take on the role of a "Physical AI Total Solution Platform" that supports the entire cycle from securing domestic technology to field deployment and operation.
This comes as physical AI has emerged as a core technology in various industrial fields such as manufacturing, logistics, healthcare and defense over the past year, with global competition intensifying and the need growing to systematically support actual technology development and rapid industrial application.
Accordingly, the second-phase alliance will be restructured in three main directions. First, it will link core technologies such as domestic AI chips, AI models, software, robots, sensors and computing infrastructure to build an independent "K-Physical AI Full Stack."
It will also advance into a "Physical AI Total Solution Platform." The aim is to establish a full-cycle cooperation system that goes beyond simple technology development to support communication networks, system integration (SI), data centers, security, standards, certification and operation, enabling rapid application at actual worksites across various industrial fields.
In addition, the alliance plans to expand its cooperation scope, which had been centered on manufacturing, into logistics, agriculture, healthcare, defense, public administration and disaster safety, serving as a higher-level cooperation platform that connects demand across all industrial fields with technology supply capabilities. To this end, it will work in close cooperation with related ministries and alliances centered on each industry domain.
The second-phase alliance also substantially overhauled its operating system to strengthen execution. The existing 10 divisions were slimmed down into three core divisions: K-Physical AI Full Stack, Vertical Industry Bridge, and Foundation Governance. In addition, action groups will be placed under each division to pursue actual project identification and commercialization.
Participating institutions were also expanded. Twelve associations and organizations, including the Korea Software Industry Association (KOSA), the Korea Physical AI Association, the Korea AI & Robot Industry Association, the Korea Fabless Industry Association, and the Korea Data Center Council, will participate to build a full-cycle physical AI cooperation system spanning AI model development, semiconductors, data centers, networks, security and standardization.
Deputy Prime Minister Bae Kyung-hoon stressed at the event, "To get ahead in the physical AI competition, we must have both independent technological capabilities and a foundation for industrial expansion." He added, "This restructuring is significant in that the Physical AI Alliance has formed its lineup as a 'Physical AI Total Solution Platform' that connects technology development achievements to actual sites and feeds the data and demand generated at sites back into technology development."
