Urban Air Mobility Commercialization Next Year... Detailed Roadmap and Legal Amendments Planned Within the Year

The government is set to fully embark on the commercialization of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) to usher in the era of urban air vehicles. Plans are also underway to establish a domestic AI semiconductor-based data center and launch cloud services utilizing 50-qubit quantum computers.

On the 14th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced these key new growth project plans at the Emergency Economic Ministers' Meeting. The government will first intensify urban demonstrations for UAM commercialization, a future mobility model, starting this August. Customized regulatory exemptions will be prepared for demonstrations in the metropolitan areas including the Ara Waterway, Han River, and Tancheon Stream, and frequencies for testing will be secured. A detailed roadmap including early commercialization next year and expansion of commercial areas by 2030, along with legislative amendments for institutionalization of projects, will be pursued within this year.

As part of new technology projects pioneering future fields, cloud services using a domestically developed 20-qubit quantum computer will be launched in the second half of this year. The government aims to further advance related technologies to secure 50-qubit quantum computer technology by 2026 and 1000-qubit technology by 2032.

Through collaboration among industry, academia, and research institutes, development of long-distance transmission technology using quantum internet will continue, along with research to secure commercialization technologies for quantum sensors.

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Additionally, support will be expanded for infectious disease vaccine and therapeutic research, development of regenerative medicine treatments for rare and intractable diseases, and new energy technology development such as next-generation reactors.

The government also unveiled plans to open fully automated ports to build next-generation logistics systems. The 2nd to 5th phases of Busan Port New Port will be opened as fully automated ports by next month, and test operations for port automation at Gwangyang Port will commence in the first half of this year.

To lay the foundation for introducing urban order-delivery facilities (MFC), related systems including the Enforcement Decree of the Building Act will be improved, and a private consultative body will be formed to discuss MFC installation utilizing existing facilities such as gas stations. Legal and institutional arrangements for robot unmanned delivery and development of next-generation logistics systems using drones will also continue.

Support measures to secure a 'super-gap' in strategic industries such as semiconductors and shipbuilding have also been prepared. A domestic AI semiconductor-based data center will be established in June, and cloud-based AI service demonstrations will begin within the year. To foster the shipbuilding industry, the government will push for the enactment of the 'Next-Generation Shipbuilding Industry Promotion Act' and accelerate institutional improvements. Technology development and demonstration projects will be promoted using the autonomous ship demonstration center as a land and sea testbed.

Plans are also set to complete smart aquaculture clusters in two locations, Busan and Gangwon, this year. The goal is to produce 10,000 tons of salmon domestically by 2027, which is currently fully imported.

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