Chonnam National University Hospital Selected for Regional Hub Institution Support Project

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Gwan-woo] Jeonnam National University Hospital has recently been selected for the government’s regional hub institution support project, the ‘Hospital-Centered AI-Based Digital Biomedical Industry Advancement Project,’ in collaboration with Gwangju Metropolitan City, accelerating the development of the regional medical industry.

According to Jeonnam National University Hospital on the 11th, as a result of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s 2022 new regional hub institution support project competition, Jeonnam National University Hospital, equipped with the capability to lead the AI convergence cutting-edge medical industry in preparation for the 4th Industrial Revolution era, was selected as the lead institution for this project with active support from local governments.

The digital biomedical industry is a pioneering industry that reflects the latest 4th Industrial Revolution-related technologies (3D printing, big data analysis, artificial intelligence, etc.) and convergence trends applied to future medical new technologies, based on the existing biomedical industry centered on dental and orthopedic materials and components, optical medical devices, CAD/CAM equipment, and contact lenses.

In particular, this project selected dental, ophthalmology, and otolaryngology diseases as representative disease groups, aiming to integrate AI based on medical data and life logs to pursue the intelligence and diversification of digital biomedical device products.

The strong will and full support of Gwangju City for the advancement and diversification of the regional digital biomedical industry cluster also played a significant role in the selection for this project.

Furthermore, the ease of building and utilizing high-quality cohort-based medical data necessary for the advancement of regional strengths such as biomaterial component medical devices, and the ability to promote full-cycle support before commercialization, were highly evaluated.

This project will receive a total budget of 10 billion KRW over three years starting next year, led by Jeonnam National University Hospital, with Gwangju Technopark (Gwangju TP) and Jeonnam National University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation also participating.

Jeonnam National University Hospital will lead the project by establishing a clinical-linked product development system and supporting product verification, Gwangju TP will support product advancement and customized commercialization for companies, and Jeonnam National University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation will provide performance evaluation, safety evaluation, and customized product regulatory consulting for biomedical products.

As a result, expansion of AI-based healthcare medical device fields for regional medical biomaterial component industries and optical medical device companies will be possible, and activation of related industries is expected through regional agglomeration of specialized companies, startups, and knowledge-based enterprises.

Additionally, the Gwangju region is expected to grow as a hub city for AI convergence medical device development and lead the global medical market of the 4th Industrial Revolution.

Jo Hyung-ho, head of research planning at the Biomedical Research Institute of Jeonnam National University Hospital and the overall project leader, said, “Through the hospital’s AI-Medi incubating system, active cooperation between the hospital and companies has revitalized medical device development and production,” adding, “This is expected to establish a platform that can create a future advanced medical industry in the Gwangju region.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.