Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Wins Minister of Employment and Labor Award for AI Safety Technology Including HAMSTOR and PRIME Robots

Proving the Excellence of "AI, Digital Twin, and Robot" Safety Technologies
at the "2026 AI and Smart Industrial Safety Technology Best Case Challenge"

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power has been recognized for the excellence of its AI-based industrial safety technology, becoming the only government or public institution to win the Minister of Employment and Labor Award for AI safety technology.

On July 9, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power announced that it received the highest honor, the Minister of Employment and Labor Award, at the "2026 AI and Smart Industrial Safety Technology Best Case Challenge" held on July 8. The event was hosted by the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency.

Officials from Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP), who won the Minister of Employment and Labor Award at the "2026 AI & Smart Industrial Safety Technology Best Practices Challenge" held on the 8th, are taking a commemorative photo. KHNP

The competition was organized to discover and promote outstanding cases of industrial accident prevention using AI and smart technologies, with a total of 116 cases from across the country participating. An official from Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power explained, "Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power was awarded the ministerial honor after passing the document evaluation, on-site demonstration, and final presentation assessment." The company was highly praised for its internally developed AI and digital twin-based integrated safety navigation system, as well as the on-site application technology of intelligent robots specialized for nuclear power plants, designed to overcome the extreme environments of nuclear facilities.

The integrated safety navigation system, based on AI and digital twin technology, constructs a virtual model (digital twin) of a nuclear power plant's working environment and links hundreds of thousands of equipment locations, safety-related blueprints, and procedure documents into a single platform. This system actively provides workers with optimal movement routes and safety information for confined or elevated areas, and offers real-time guidance during emergencies through AI-based simulations, fundamentally eliminating human error.

Nuclear power plant-specific AI work robots, such as HAMSTOR, PRIME, and NUVIDA, are deployed in high-radiation zones, confined spaces, and underwater locations that are difficult for humans to access. By fully automating operations in these areas, the robots minimize workers’ radiation exposure and reduce the possibility of industrial accidents to zero.

Shin Hocheol, Director of the Central Research Institute at Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, said, "This award is the result of a human-centered digital transformation (DX) that prioritizes on-site safety by integrating nuclear power plant work robots with advanced AI technology." He added, "We will continue to advance our proprietary technologies to expand technology transfer to small and medium-sized enterprises and take the lead in setting smart safety standards for Korean nuclear power plants in the global market."

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