[The Road to M.AX⑤(Final)] "Siemens Wants to Learn, Too"...Building a Long-Term Roadmap and Fostering the Ecosystem Is Essential

"This Is the Turning Point for Manufacturing"

"A Five- to Ten-Year National Roadmap Is Needed"

"We Must Go Beyond Supporting Manufacturers and Cultivate Data and Supplier Ecosystems Together"

On June 11 in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, at the Korea Institute of Robot Convergence (KIRO), a robot wearing heat-resistant clothing is operating a temperature measurement device on a ladle, reproducing high-risk tasks in a steel mill. POSCO and the research team are promoting the unmanned automation of hazardous processes in steel mills using humanoid-based work robots. Photo by Nahum Kang

Korea's manufacturing sector, once known as the "heart of industry," stands at a critical crossroads. Due to falling birth rates and an aging population, the workforce sustaining production sites is shrinking. Meanwhile, China is no longer merely a "follower" relying on cheap labor; in key industries such as electric vehicles and batteries, steel, shipbuilding, and robotics, it is closing the technological gap with Korea and even taking the lead in certain areas. Leading manufacturing countries like Germany and Japan are also ramping up manufacturing innovation by integrating artificial intelligence (AI), and the United States is spearheading the global AI ecosystem through its AI platforms and semiconductors.

Experts warn that Korea’s manufacturing sector can no longer maintain its competitive edge through conventional methods alone. Korea is unable to compete based on low labor costs or the strength of a large domestic market. The solution is to integrate AI into manufacturing. The government's embrace of "M.AX (Manufacturing AI Transformation)" as a national industrial strategy reflects this necessity.

While agreeing with the direction of M.AX, experts point out that simply increasing short-term projects will not be sufficient. They argue that Korea needs a national roadmap that spans five or ten years, as well as an industrial ecosystem that fosters data, solutions, and operations and maintenance together.

"We Have Passed the ‘Golden Time’—This Is a Turning Point"

Byungdong Yoon, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Seoul National University and CEO of OnePredict, told The Asia Business Daily on July 14, "AI offers clues to solving numerous challenges facing our society. In manufacturing, mass retirements of skilled experts have begun, while the defense sector is experiencing manpower shortages. Manufacturing AI can be more than simple automation—it's a vital tool for preserving industrial competitiveness."

He continued, "A major strength of Korea's manufacturing sector is the tacit and accumulated know-how developed over many years. I fully agree with the direction of M.AX, which seeks to combine this knowledge with AI to achieve a fundamental transformation."

Sanghyun Lee, Director of the AI Digital Transformation Research Center at the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade, also noted, "The global big tech firms now dominate the ecosystem for general-purpose AI, making it realistically difficult for us to compete head-to-head. In contrast, manufacturing AX is rooted in industry-specific expertise and knowledge, which plays to the strengths of Korean manufacturing."

In particular, experts believe that this moment is not merely a 'golden time' for investment, but a turning point where the rankings within the manufacturing industry could be completely reversed.

Professor Yoon said, "Depending on the choices we make now, the sector’s leader could become number three, and number three could become number one. AI isn’t just a tool for improvement; it's an existential issue for the survival of manufacturing itself."

He added that Korea could overtake Germany and Japan through manufacturing AI. "At the recent World Manufacturing Forum, I spoke with representatives from Siemens in Germany, who assessed Korea’s manufacturing AI strategy positively and are considering it for benchmarking. Germany and Japan possess strong manufacturing capabilities, but since their digital transformation (DX) is not yet fully underway, adopting manufacturing AI may take considerable time."

Director Lee pointed to the direct threat posed by global big tech entering the manufacturing sector. "These companies are entering manufacturing in a full-stack approach, spanning from general-purpose AI to on-site implementation. If Korea does not connect its manufacturing strengths to the AI ecosystem in time, we risk falling into a ‘lock-in’ situation, dependent on frameworks created by global firms," he warned.

Supporting Only Manufacturing Firms Is Not Enough: “We Must Prevent an AI Version of the Materials, Parts, and Equipment Crisis”

Experts emphasize that M.AX cannot be sustained merely by assisting manufacturing companies in adopting AI. The industrial ecosystem needs to grow by nurturing companies that specialize in sector-specific AI models, generate and interpret data, and operate and maintain these systems after implementation.

Director Lee referenced Korea's past dependency on imported materials, parts, and equipment as exposed by Japan’s export restrictions. "No matter how competitive your finished products may be, if key segments of your supply chain are weak, the entire industry is at risk. Without ecosystem-level preparation in AI, we could face another materials, parts, and equipment crisis," he warned.

"AI requires continuous learning from industry-specific data," he said. "If there is a shortage of real data, new supplier companies like 'data factories' are needed to create synthetic datasets and enable learning through simulations." He added, "Rather than competing in generic AI, Korea should focus on building and operating a supplier ecosystem tailored to manufacturing, which is precisely where our strengths can shine."

According to a survey conducted by the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT) on 960 companies in seven advanced industrial sectors that have not yet adopted AI, the greatest obstacle cited by manufacturing firms in introducing AI was the burden of initial investment costs (49.0%). The shortage of AI specialists was cited by 37.7%, and the burden of maintenance and operational costs accounted for 32.2%. This highlights the need not just for the purchase of solutions but also for the concurrent development of specialized companies and personnel to apply and operate AI in line with individual processes.

A mechanism for technology transfer and diffusion to mid-sized and small companies is also needed. Professor Yoon said, "Large corporations can respond independently with their financial and human resources, but for mid-sized and small companies, this is far from easy. Unless a system emerges in which technology used by large firms is successively passed down—thus reducing costs and broadening accessibility—gaps will inevitably widen."

Among companies that have not yet adopted AI, only 17.0% of small businesses have future plans to do so, compared to 32.1% of mid-sized firms and 40.0% of large enterprises. By number of employees, just 14.9% of firms with 10 to 50 staff expressed adoption plans, while 27.4% of companies with over 300 employees did so.

"Short-Term Projects Don’t Work—A Five- or Ten-Year Roadmap Is Essential"

What experts consistently stress is the need for a long-term roadmap. Korea must first set a clear direction for where its manufacturing sector should head, and then allocate annual investments and tasks, rather than simply launching projects in reaction to emerging technologies or external advice.

Professor Yoon stated, "M.AX is not an initiative that should be addressed with six-month or one-year pilot projects—it’s a national strategy that requires a five- or ten-year outlook. After establishing a long-term roadmap, we must pursue step-by-step plans: what we invest in now, what we do next year, and the goals we aim to achieve in three and five years."

"A roadmap is not meant to precisely predict the future; it can be adjusted as international conditions and technologies evolve," he added. "What’s important is to explain why current initiatives are necessary within the framework of the long-term and mid-term objectives."

Director Lee also cited Germany’s "Industry 4.0" as an example. "Germany disclosed its scenarios and steadily realized each step in line with technological progress. Korea, too, must create a long-term roadmap that reflects our industrial structure and strengths, instead of simply chasing global trends."

He also identified the fragmented nature of AI policy implementation—split among government ministries—as a challenge to be addressed. "We need a ‘bridge’ to connect the smart factory policy of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups with the M.AX policy of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. If, during the smart factory upgrade, companies experience AI firsthand and see the investment benefits, the adoption of manufacturing AI will accelerate."

Ultimately, the success or failure of M.AX will hinge less on how many new AI technologies are developed, and more on how consistently Korea pursues strategies that connect the country's manufacturing strengths with AI. According to experts, what will determine the next decade of Korea’s manufacturing sector is not AI technology itself, but an unwavering national roadmap that translates that technology into productivity and industrial competitiveness.

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