Ministry of SMEs and Startups to Supply 264 GPUs to SME Manufacturing Sites and Startups

AI Agent and Super-Gap Startup Projects Selected for National AI Project
64 GPUs Secured for AI Agent, 200 for Super-Gap Startup
Selected Companies Can Access GPUs Remotely via Private Data Center Collaboration

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on April 21 that it will provide 264 GPUs, secured through the "National AI Project," to small and medium-sized manufacturing sites and startups.

GPU

Previously, on April 1, the Ministry of Science and ICT decided to allocate about 3,000 out of 10,000 government-secured GPUs to various ministries' projects through the supplementary budget, as part of the "National AI Project." The GPU allocation plan was finalized after assessing demand and conducting reviews at each ministry.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups applied for two tasks under the National AI Project: the "Multi-AI Agent Project Specialized for Small and Medium Manufacturing" and the "Strategic Technology Commercialization and AI Transformation (AX) Acceleration Project for Innovative AI Startups" (hereafter referred to as "Super-gap Startups"). Both were selected.

The ministry will allocate 64 GPUs to the AI Agent project and 200 GPUs to the Super-gap Startup project. In particular, the Super-gap Startup project was designated as a key initiative to foster the growth of innovative AI startups leveraging GPU resources under the National AI Project.

All GPU resources distributed this time will be provided to small and medium-sized enterprises, venture companies, and startups. These will be used to support technology development and commercialization for companies struggling with insufficient AI infrastructure.

The two projects scheduled by the ministry will be open for applications and undergo selection evaluations from April to May, with support beginning in June this year. Selected companies will be able to use the GPUs remotely via cloud services linked to the private data center NHN Cloud, receiving free support until the end of the year.

The AI Agent support project targets consortia of technology and manufacturing companies, covering the entire cycle from technology development for optimizing manufacturing processes and quality at SME manufacturing sites to on-site application. The GPUs can be used for AI learning on manufacturing processes, data acquisition, and development and validation of AI agent technologies.

For the "Super-gap Startup" project, which has been allocated 200 GPUs, 85 GPUs will be provided for developing "Strategic AI" by integrating the expertise of universities and government-funded research institutes with startups’ technologies, and another 85 GPUs will be provided for developing customized AI solutions tailored to specific industries through inter-company collaboration. In particular, 30 GPUs will be allocated to the "Startup for Everyone" initiative within the Super-gap Startup project, eliminating the difficulty of securing GPUs—a major barrier for would-be entrepreneurs.

Park Yongsoon, policy chief for small and medium enterprises at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "The GPUs secured through our participation in the National AI Project will provide practical support for AI transformation in manufacturing sites and for startups pursuing AI-based business models. The ministry will continue to expand the use of AI across manufacturing sites and the startup ecosystem to strengthen the foundation for business growth."

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