KT is joining hands with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Dime Research to commercialise physical AI businesses, including building an AI-based unmanned factory.

KT said on Sept. 8 it signed a memorandum of understanding with KAIST and physical AI specialist Dime Research to develop and test physical AI technologies and pursue commercialisation.

The agreement was promoted after the three organisations discussed business cooperation during the second round of activities of the Physical AI Alliance led by the Ministry of Science and ICT. The three will combine their technologies and business capabilities to jointly push commercialisation of a 'Dark Factory' platform for unmanned factories, discover physical AI business opportunities and support global expansion of 'K-physical AI'.

Commercialisation of the Dark Factory platform will be centred on the Ministry of Science and ICT's 2026 programme to build an R&D ecosystem for a collaboration-intelligence physical AI-based software platform. The project will develop and test an AI-based unmanned and automated platform to run manufacturing sites autonomously, with the three organisations taking part for five years.

Based on the logistics and manufacturing robot control platforms and robot technologies held by KAIST and Dime Research, the three will develop technologies to automate manufacturing processes. They will also build a testbed similar to industrial sites to verify technologies and expand application manufacturing fields based on demonstration results.

KT will provide an operations platform that integrates and manages various robots and AI systems based on its data platform. It will support real-time robot judgment and control by using edge AI that processes data close to the site and ultra-high-speed, ultra-low-latency networks.

They will also combine simulation technology for robot AI training and performance verification with AI agent-based system integration capabilities. The plan is to build a physical AI environment in which robots recognise surrounding environments, make their own decisions and perform tasks at manufacturing sites.

The three organisations will jointly pursue the construction of an AI agent-based physical AI operation and verification environment, as well as on-site demonstrations and commercialisation at manufacturing sites. They will also jointly pursue training specialised personnel and entering global markets.

Choi Seong-yul (최성율), KAIST vice president for research, said, "We will create an industry-academia cooperation model in which KAIST research outcomes are demonstrated at corporate manufacturing sites and lead to new industries and businesses."

Jang Young-jae (장영재), CEO of Dime Research, said, "By combining KAIST research capabilities, KT's AI and network infrastructure, and Dime Research's robot operation, control and Dark Factory technologies, we will create a successful case of physical AI-based autonomous manufacturing."

Park Sang-won (박상원), executive vice president and head of KT's AX Business Division, said, "It is meaningful in that we have 마련 a physical AI cooperation system that leads from R&D to demonstrations and commercialisation." He added, "We will support the intelligence of manufacturing sites by bringing together AX capabilities such as AI agents, edge AI and networks."