SMEPC Holds Roundtable with G-Valley Tenant Companies to Build AX Ecosystem

Concerns Raised Over Initial Investment Costs and More

The Small and Medium Business Promotion Corporation announced on March 26 that it held a roundtable titled "SMEPC On the Move: Problem Solving on Site" at Ubion, located in G-Valley, Guro-gu, Seoul, to foster an artificial intelligence transformation (AX) ecosystem.

Exterior view of the Small and Medium Business Corporation in Jinju, Gyeongnam. Small and Medium Business Corporation

This roundtable was organized to address the challenges faced by tenant companies in G-Valley, Seoul's only national industrial complex, and to assess their policy needs as the transition to AI-centric industries accelerates. It also aimed to support AX adoption.

The event was attended by Sukkyoon Kang, Chairman of the Small and Medium Business Promotion Corporation, Kim Jaeyoung, Director of Planning and Economy at Geumcheon-gu Office, as well as representatives from five related organizations and ten small and medium-sized venture companies based in G-Valley. In particular, both companies seeking to implement artificial intelligence and those providing related technologies participated to discuss difficulties encountered in the industry and ways to expand AI adoption.

The participating companies identified the following major challenges: ▲ the burden of initial investment costs for AX implementation ▲ difficulties in securing AI specialists ▲ issues with compatibility between existing processes and AI technologies ▲ the need for greater linkage between support programs, including policy funds.

In response, the Small and Medium Business Promotion Corporation and related organizations in the AI sector provided information on AX-related programs, including policy funding, talent development, and industrial structure advancement, and discussed ways to address the companies' challenges.

Chairman Kang stated, "G-Valley, which has driven the development of Korea's manufacturing and IT industries, is a key foundation for Seoul's industrial competitiveness," adding, "The Small and Medium Business Promotion Corporation will continue to provide on-site, hands-on support to ensure that AI technologies lead to tangible results for companies."

Prior to the roundtable, the Small and Medium Business Promotion Corporation signed an "Eight-Party Business Agreement for Building the G-Valley AI·AX Ecosystem" with related organizations, including local governments and business associations. The signatory organizations plan to collaborate in a variety of fields, such as policy funding, AI education and workforce training, and technology and consulting, to support AX for small and medium-sized ventures in G-Valley.

After the event, participants toured the Ubion facility, which both hosted the roundtable and was a party to the agreement, to see real-life examples of AI implementation. G-Valley is an industrial complex spanning Guro-gu and Geumcheon-gu in Seoul, housing approximately 15,000 companies and about 140,000 employees, with a high concentration of manufacturing and IT firms.

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