Daedong selected for K-GX project, targets electric tractor commercialization by 2030

Daedong will develop an AI-based electric tractor as part of the government's Korea Green Transformation (K-GX) project.

The company announced Thursday that its multipurpose AI electric tractor development project had been selected as a K-GX signature project. K-GX is the government's green transformation strategy, under which it plans to channel a total of 1,000 trillion won ($747 billion) in fiscal and climate finance resources over the next decade.

Through the project, Daedong will develop a 55kW (approximately 74 horsepower) multipurpose electric tractor. The company plans to equip it with a battery pack capable of four to five hours of operation, a continuously variable transmission and AI autonomous driving technology, enabling it to handle a range of farming tasks including tillage and pest control.

Daedong aims to complete core technology development by 2027, build production infrastructure and conduct domestic and overseas field tests in 2028 and 2029, and begin commercialization in 2030. The company also plans to establish a mass production system for the electric tractor by introducing autonomous transport robots and an AI vision inspection system.

Daedong launched a Level 4 autonomous AI tractor in April and plans to enter the North American market next year. The company was also previously selected as the lead firm in a consortium for the national agricultural AI platform construction and operation project, worth 254.6 billion won.

"We will use this project as an opportunity to expand investment across technology development, manufacturing and commercialization, and create new growth opportunities in the global AI electric agricultural machinery market," said Won Yu-hyun, chief executive of Daedong.