South Korea outlines AI plans for defence

The Korea Research Institute for Defense Technology Planning and Advancement (KRIT) has launched a road map to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) for future warfare.

The defence-based AI road map – the first of its kind in South Korea – seeks to develop mid- to long-term technology strategies to support the advancement of future military systems, said KRIT, which was launched in 2021 to support the growth of the country's defence technology industrial base (DTIB).

The road map identifies 272 AI-based “core technologies” to advance 30 military systems in areas such as surveillance and reconnaissance, command-and-control, ground sensors, and cyber security.

KRIT said that the road map will be utilised by defence institutions, ministries, and research institutes for planning the development of AI-based defence equipment, discovering new military systems, and supporting the involvement of civilian institutes in the national defence sector.

In a separate release, KRIT indicated that the AI road map is aligned with wider efforts to develop advanced future warfare capabilities. KRIT said that it has identified 12 “future weapons” that are expected to play a role in predicting “future changes in the battlefield environment”.

KRIT's projects to develop future military technologies are linked closely with South Korea's Defense Science and Technology Innovation Promotion Act, which was enacted last year to accelerate the country's DTIB.

The legislation is aimed at enabling the country to make rapid changes in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) as well as to support the evolution of an open defence R&D system in which there is greater emphasis on collaboration, including private-sector involvement.