Five Cases Including AI Animal Health Monitoring Pass Regulatory Sandbox

On the 16th, the Ministry of Science and ICT held the 28th New Technology and Service Deliberation Committee meeting and designated a total of five regulatory exemptions, including the 'Parking Lot Entry Availability and Discount Benefit Notification Service,' and relaxed additional conditions for 10 previously designated regulatory exemption projects.

In this agenda, the first case of establishing and conducting a demonstration plan through consultations among stakeholders under the newly introduced 'Conflict Resolution Type Regulatory Sandbox' by the government emerged. This product, which won an innovation award at the U.S. International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), received a demonstration exemption for the 'AI-based Veterinary Pet Health Monitoring Service,' where veterinarians diagnose pets' ophthalmic diseases by referring to analysis results from AI-based pet condition diagnostic software. Over the next two years, demonstration data on safety and business feasibility will be collected through the demonstration project.

This product was applied for a regulatory sandbox exemption in August last year but faced delays in review due to concerns from the Korean Veterinary Medical Association about the Veterinary Act's principle of direct treatment by veterinarians, risks of medical accidents, and misuse of pharmaceuticals. The Office for Government Policy Coordination selected it as a priority project for the 'Conflict Resolution Type Regulatory Sandbox' in consultation with the Ministry of Science and ICT, which is in charge of the ICT regulatory sandbox, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the regulatory authority. A 'Conflict Resolution Sandbox Council' was formed, including stakeholders (Korean Veterinary Medical Association, AI4Pet Co., Ltd.), private experts, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and related ministries.

Additionally, through an active interpretation of the 'Parking Lot Entry Availability and Discount Benefit Notification Service,' which informs the availability of parking spaces by identifying vehicle size and fuel type before entering the parking lot and provides discount information for compact or electric vehicles, immediate market launch was enabled.

Furthermore, the T map Mobility consortium's 'Airport Bus LED Digital Signage Advertising Service' received a demonstration exemption. The Duzon Bizon consortium's 'Mobile Electronic Notification for Administrative, Public, and Private Institutions' and Mirabel Soft's 'Non-face-to-face Medical Service for Overseas Koreans' received temporary permits.

As a result of a comprehensive survey of difficulties encountered during the demonstration processes of companies previously designated for regulatory exemptions and active consultations with related ministries, additional conditions for 10 projects were relaxed to facilitate smooth progress of future demonstration projects and thereby promote domestic demand activation. For example, the 'Wireless Charging Service for Electric Buses (WiPowerOne),' designated for demonstration exemption at the 12th Deliberation Committee, initially had a restriction limiting it to seven electric buses in the Daejeon area, but the restriction was eased to allow demonstration with up to 15 electric cargo vehicles in Paju, Guri, and Namyangju areas. The demonstration area for the 'Car Rental Brokerage Platform among Residents in Apartment Complexes (Towns),' designated at the 16th Deliberation Committee, was expanded from Hanam, Guri, and Namyangju to local governments within Gyeonggi Province that agreed to the demonstration.

Meanwhile, before the committee meeting opened that day, an appointment ceremony was held for the third term of private members of the New Technology and Service Deliberation Committee. The committee consists of a total of 20 members, including the chairperson, the Minister of Science and ICT, seven government members from ministries such as the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and 13 private experts in the field of information and communication convergence. Private members serve a two-year term (renewable once). Nine new private members were appointed for the third term following the expiration of the second term, composed of experts from various fields such as academia, industry, and law.

Minister Lee Jong-ho of the Ministry of Science and ICT stated, “The basic principle of the regulatory sandbox is to allow anyone to freely conduct business as long as it does not harm the life and safety of the people,” and added, “I ask related ministries and private members to actively work so that the newly appointed third-term committee can lead digital innovation and regulatory innovation in new industries.”

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