The Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Information Society Agency (NIA) held a kickoff meeting for the "Hyper-AI Network" project on Tuesday, which fuses standalone 5G with an AI-based radio access network, known as AI-RAN.
The pilot network aims to prove out physical AI services such as welding, painting and patrol robots in industrial settings, with the government planning to widen the scope to humanoids from 2027.
The state will pour about 17.2 billion won ($11.4 million) into the effort, selecting two consortia led by SK Telecom and KT as lead operators.
SK Telecom's consortium will build an AI-RAN pilot network at SK Incheon Petrochem and KG Mobility sites, testing services including a four-legged patrol robot, unmanned autonomous transport and a low-power mode for humanoids.
The project adopts a multi-vendor approach, simultaneously deploying AI-RAN equipment from Samsung Electronics, Ericsson, Nokia and HFR to gauge performance gains against conventional networks.
KT's consortium will develop an "AI core orchestrator" that analyses network data in real time and fixes faults automatically, verifying a stable communication environment for swarms of robots at shipyards.
Working with HD Hyundai Samho, KT will trial three services — AI welding robots, AI painting robots and autonomous robots that run telecom facilities — to measure gains in productivity and safety.
"For physical AI to be realised safely and reliably at industrial sites, a hyper-AI network supporting ultra-low-latency, high-reliability communication and high-capacity uplink is essential," NIA President Kim Hyung-chul said.
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