North Jeolla Province Secures Major National Project Combining Agriculture and AI Technology

Selected for the Demonstration Infrastructure Project Promoted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
A Total Investment of 30 Billion Won from This Year Through 2030

North Jeolla Special Self-Governing Province has secured a major national project that combines agriculture with artificial intelligence technology. According to the province on May 4, it was selected for the "AI Robot Demonstration Infrastructure for Facility Agriculture" project promoted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, setting the stage for a five-year initiative from 2026 to 2030 with a total investment of 30 billion won.

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The selected project focuses on verifying the performance of AI robots, which can be applied to facility agriculture sites, in real-world environments and establishing a foundation for expanding into overseas markets. At the same time, the province will push forward with the creation of a cluster to centralize the intelligent agricultural robot industry.

Currently, in rural areas, the rapid progression of population aging and a shortage of labor are increasing the demand for automation. However, the facility agriculture sector has faced limitations on commercialization due to a lack of infrastructure to test technology in real-world settings.

To overcome these constraints, North Jeolla Province designed this project in collaboration with Gimje City and the Korea Electronics Technology Institute (KETI). The proposal of a demonstration-oriented model linked to the Smart Farm Innovation Valley is believed to have played a decisive role in its selection.

The core task of the project is to establish a greenhouse-based AI agricultural robot testbed. Robots capable of various tasks such as driving, harvesting, pest control, and transport will be deployed to actual agricultural sites to verify their performance and stability. In addition, a digital twin-based "Sim-to-Real" system will be introduced, allowing technologies developed in virtual environments to be tested in conjunction with real-world conditions.

Under this project, North Jeolla Province will be responsible for building the demonstration infrastructure, while South Chungcheong Province will be in charge of verifying the electrification performance of the robots, forming a collaborative structure.

North Jeolla Province plans to use this project as an opportunity to establish a full-cycle support system spanning design, demonstration, certification, and commercialization, and to accelerate efforts to attract related companies and expand the industrial ecosystem.

Yang Sunhwa, Director-General of the Future Advanced Industry Bureau of North Jeolla Province, said, "We believe this project will serve as an important catalyst for accelerating the digital transformation of agriculture. We will actively work to attract companies and foster the industrial ecosystem."

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