South Korea's biotech technology exports top 20 trillion won led by platform deals SEOUL, December 28 (AJP) - South Korean pharmaceutical and biotech companies saw technology exports surge 162 percent to a record $14.5 billion this year, driven by robust demand for platform technologies and new drug candidates. The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association said Sunday that total non-confidential contract values jumped from $5.5 billion last year, demonstrating the sector's growing global competitiveness. Bio-platform deals led the char December 28, 2025

Animation pioneer Nelson Shin, VFX leader Daniel Son to lead jury at WAIFF Seoul 2026 SEOUL, December 26 (AJP) - The World AI Film Festival Seoul 2026 (WAIFF Seoul 2026) has appointed animation pioneer Nelson Shin as a jury member and named Daniel Son, founder and chief executive of visual effects studio Westworld, as president of the jury, reinforcing Korea’s growing role in shaping the future of AI-driven filmmaking. The appointments bring together two figures representing different generations of global visual storytelling — from the foundations of m December 26, 2025

KAIST researchers discover security flaw in architecture used by Google Gemini SEOUL, December 26 (AJP) - Researchers have identified a critical security vulnerability in the "Mixture-of-Experts" architecture used by major artificial intelligence models such as Google Gemini. The study reveals that a single "malicious expert" hidden within an AI's internal structure can bypass safety filters, increasing the rate of harmful responses from zero to 80 percent. The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) announced on De December 26, 2025

KAIST researchers develop animal-free culture platform to improve intestinal stem cell therapy SEOUL, December 23 (AJP) - Researchers have developed a new technology to grow human intestinal stem cells without using animal-derived materials, resolving a major safety hurdle for regenerative medicine. The method significantly improves the ability of these cells to move and repair damaged tissues, potentially accelerating treatments for intractable gastrointestinal diseases. The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) announced on December 23 that a joint re December 23, 2025

S. Korea develops the world's second-fastest bullet train SEOUL, December 22 (AJP) - South Korea has finished the development of a next-generation bullet train designed to operate at 370 kilometers per hour, the transport ministry said Monday. The achievement positions South Korea as the world's second-fastest rail operator, after China, to operate commercial rail services at speeds exceeding 350 kilometers per hour. Finalized under a four-year national research and development program, the project focused on the EMU-370. This electr December 22, 2025

KAIST researchers develop AI to automate plastic manufacturing and train new workers SEOUL, December 22 (AJP) - Professor Yoo Seung-hwa and his research team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have developed an artificial intelligence system that can automatically manage factory machines and guide workers. The technology was created to help factories maintain production quality as experienced experts retire and more foreign workers enter the workforce, potentially creating language barriers on the factory floor. Most plastic items us December 22, 2025

Estonia taps Hanwha Aerospace's Chunmoo rocket system in $320 mil. arms deal SEOUL, December 22 (AJP) - Hanwha Aerospace has signed a contract worth about 440 billion won ($320 million) to supply its Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher system to Estonia, the company said on Monday. Under the agreement, Hanwha Aerospace will deliver six Chunmoo launcher systems along with three types of guided missiles with ranges of 80 kilometers, 160 kilometers and 290 kilometers. The company said it plans to pursue localization in Estonia, including partial local produ December 22, 2025

Samsung unveils Exynos 2600 chip, expected to power Galaxy S26 series SEOUL, December 19 (AJP) - Samsung Electronics on Friday unveiled its Exynos 2600 mobile application processor, a chip widely expected to power the company’s next flagship Galaxy smartphone lineup, set for release early next year. According to Samsung Electronics’ website, the Exynos 2600 was designed by Samsung’s System LSI Business and manufactured by Samsung Foundry, both part of the company’s Device Solutions (DS) division. The chip is produced usin December 19, 2025

Kookmin University undergraduates publish SCI paper through UROP research SEOUL, December 19 (AJP) - Two undergraduate students at Kookmin University have published a research paper in an international SCI-indexed journal after participating in the university's Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP), highlighting the growing role of hands-on research in undergraduate education. Kim Min-su and Lee Jeong-hun, students in the Department of Nanoelectronics and Physics, recently published a paper in Materials, an international journal publis December 19, 2025

Kakao releases advanced AI language model Kanana-2 as open source SEOUL, December 19 (AJP) - South Korea's Kakao Corp. said on Friday it has released its next-generation large language model, Kanana-2, as open source. The company said it published the in-house model on Hugging Face, adding that the release showcases technology optimized for building AI agents capable of understanding context and executing tasks autonomously. Kakao began unveiling its Kanana model lineup last year and has since released successive versions as open sourc December 19, 2025