Seoul subway's lost-item delivery and AI cooling system advance to government innovation finals

Seoul Metro announced that two of its innovation cases have advanced to the finals of the 2026 Government Innovation Championship, a competition organized by the Ministry of Interior and Safety.

The selections recognize the agency's efforts to address everyday inconveniences for citizens and its achievements in applying AI to operations, affirming Seoul Metro's standing as a leader in public service innovation.

The Government Innovation Championship is the government's flagship innovation competition, designed to identify and promote outstanding innovation cases from central government agencies, local governments and public institutions. It selects top policies across three categories: participatory and communication innovation, foundational social innovation, and administrative innovation.

Seoul Metro's subway lost-item home delivery service advanced to the finals in the participatory and communication innovation category. Previously, passengers who lost items on the subway had to visit a lost-and-found center in person to retrieve them. The new service links with private logistics networks, allowing citizens to have their belongings delivered to their home, office or any other preferred location. By integrating private delivery capabilities into a public service, the initiative reduces the time and effort required of citizens and streamlines the lost-item return process.

The AI train cooling control system advanced in the administrative innovation category. The system uses AI to analyze and predict real-time passenger congestion and cabin temperatures, proactively activating cooling in crowded sections while reducing unnecessary overcooling to maximize overall efficiency. Rather than reacting after the fact to recurring summer complaints about cabin temperatures, the system takes a data-driven, preemptive approach to provide passengers with a more comfortable ride.

The AI train cooling control system was piloted in July, when it demonstrated improvements in cabin temperature management and cooling efficiency in congested sections. Its results earned a minister's award at a public institution innovation excellence competition this year.

The 41 finalists that cleared the preliminary rounds will go through online public engagement and expert judging, after which 13 entries will be selected as the final competition winners.

The online public engagement phase runs Monday through Oct. 28 on "Innovation 24," the Ministry of Interior and Safety's official online platform for government innovation. Any member of the public may participate by recommending Seoul Metro's innovation cases or leaving comments and questions.

Seoul Metro President Kim Tae-kyun said the finals berth was "thanks to the dedication of our employees, who carefully observed the inconveniences citizens face in their daily lives and sought solutions through new technologies and ideas." He urged citizens who love the Seoul subway to show their support through the final competition. "We will continue to create changes that citizens can feel, delivering a more convenient and comfortable subway service," he added.