South Korea and Italy will expand science and technology cooperation centred on three areas: artificial intelligence, climate change and bio, South Korea\'s Ministry of Science and ICT said. The two countries held the 13th Korea-Italy Joint Committee on Science and Technology in Rome with Italy\'s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. They reviewed outcomes from joint bio and chemistry research, discussed future agendas including physical AI semiconductors and climate-response crops, and explored broader cooperation on brain disease research. The next meeting will be held in Seoul.

SK Telecom said on Monday it will develop next-generation quantum cryptography technology through the European Union\'s Horizon Europe research programme. The three-year multinational project involves partners in three European countries and aims to implement and demonstrate a QPIC-AI-based quantum key distribution system to strengthen communications security. SKT will develop the PIC-based QKD system, apply AI functions and build and verify a testbed, while ETRI will develop optical chips for transmitters and receivers.