South Gyeongsang Province launches W676.3b physical AI project for factory floors

South Gyeongsang Province has launched a large-scale physical AI development initiative aimed at combining robotics and artificial intelligence to enable autonomous process control on factory floors.

The province attended the kickoff briefing for the Physical AI R&D Project, hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT on Wednesday, where officials unveiled the project's implementation roadmap. The initiative carries a total budget of 676.3 billion won ($500 million) and will run for five years from 2026 through 2030 as a major national R&D project.

The briefing drew more than 200 participants from industry, academia and research institutions, including South Gyeongsang Province Deputy Governor for Economy Choi Man-rim, People Power Party lawmaker Choi Hyeong-du of Changwon's Masanhappo-gu, and Lee Do-gyu, director general for information and communications policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT. Physical AI refers to technology that goes beyond software-based AI by integrating with robots, machinery and other equipment to directly perceive, assess and control real-world conditions on site.

The project will expand existing large language models to develop a "large action model" capable of executing physical tasks, while building NPU-based infrastructure to support it. Major universities — including Seoul National University, Sungkyunkwan University, Pusan National University, Kwangwoon University and Kyungnam University — along with large research teams will take part in the development work.

Twelve leading manufacturers based in the province will participate in field trials, with Doosan Enerbility, Hanwha Ocean, SeAH Changwon Integrated Special Steel, Bumhan Mechatech and CTR among those supplying process data and conducting on-site verification. LG AI Research, LG CNS, Megazone and Neuromeka will collaborate as specialized software and AI firms to complete a manufacturing-focused model.

The province plans to build an integrated platform — including a data pipeline and digital twin systems — by next year, and to complete autonomous process-control trials by 2030.

"We will develop a physical AI model tailored to precision manufacturing, which is South Gyeongsang Province's core strength," Deputy Governor Choi said. "We will drive tangible productivity gains and manufacturing AI transformation that companies in the province can feel on the ground."