Hanwha Co., Ltd. Collaborates with Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology to Develop 'Laser Weapon' Technology

Signing of Business Agreement on the 30th
"Contributing to the Advancement of Defense Science"

On the 30th, attendees of the agreement ceremony, including Kim Gi-seon, President of Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (fourth from the left), and Kim Seung-mo, CEO of Hanwha Corporation (fifth from the left), are taking a commemorative photo. Photo by Hanwha Corporation

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seoyoon] Hanwha Co., Ltd. has pledged to actively collaborate with Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) in the fields of optics, high-power laser technology, and applications to develop laser weapons.

Hanwha announced on the 31st that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with GIST on the 30th regarding this collaboration. Through this MOU, Hanwha and GIST will focus on securing highly challenging technologies by conducting joint research during government projects and commercializing high-power laser weapons.

Since 2012, Hanwha has continuously cooperated with GIST in the field of laser technology. They have worked on developing high-power fiber laser technology for defense purposes and research on domestic production of parts and equipment in the fiber laser field.

Kim Kiseon, President of GIST, stated, “We plan to contribute to the advancement of defense science through mutual cooperation in the laser and optics fields, which are core to future defense technology.”

Kim Seungmo, CEO of Hanwha’s Defense Division, said, “To accelerate the early deployment of future weapons, we will continue R&D on laser technology together with GIST.”

Meanwhile, since being selected as a prototype company by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) in 1999, Hanwha has participated in the development of high-energy laser oscillators for laser weapons, including chemical lasers, solid-state lasers, and fiber lasers. They possess manufacturing technology that enables continuous targeting and firing at moving targets through projects such as laser interception devices.

Building on this know-how, Hanwha was selected in 2019 as the first domestic prototype manufacturer for the laser anti-aircraft weapon system development project led by ADD. The laser anti-aircraft weapon, known as the “Korean-style Star Wars technology,” is a new concept weapon system that uses laser light sources generated from fiber optics to strike and neutralize small unmanned aerial vehicles such as drones and multicopters. A prototype is currently under development.

In May of last year, Hanwha signed a contract with ADD worth a total of 24.3 billion KRW for the prototype production of laser oscillators. By 2025, they plan to domestically produce the laser oscillator technology, which is the core technology of laser weapons. A laser oscillator is a device that generates high-power, high-quality laser beams and is essential for laser weapons that must strike targets several kilometers away.

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