The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 29th that it will recruit regional governments to promote the '2025 Regional-led AI Transition' project aimed at the fast AI transition for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in areas with low AI utilization, starting from the 30th.
This project is designed to enhance the competitiveness of SMEs and reduce the AI gap between regions through the rapid utilization and spread of AI among small businesses with low AI usage. According to a survey by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics & Trade (KIET) in 2024, the AI utilization rate for small and medium-sized enterprises is 28.7%, which is 20.1% lower than the 48.8% for large corporations. The utilization rate for non-capital region corporations is 17.9%, which is 22.5% lower than the 40.4% for capital region corporations.
Regional governments wishing to participate in the project can apply with various programs reflecting the industrial characteristics of their area, such as AI solution development, AI testing beds, cloud-based AI environment establishment, and enhancing AI utilization capabilities among corporate employees.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to support a total of 35 billion won for the AI utilization and dissemination programs of regional governments. An average of 7 billion won will be provided to five regional governments. However, the subsidy amount will be within 60% of the total project cost, while the remaining 40% must be covered by the regional governments and small and medium-sized enterprises.
Applications can be submitted by referring to the announcement until August 29. For detailed information, including the project proposal, inquiries can be made to the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME), which is in charge of AI utilization and dissemination.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups is expected to finalize the selection of five regional governments in October. The evaluation will consider implementation capability, expertise, feasibility, and self-funding ability through document assessments and face-to-face evaluations.