The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises said on the 22nd it is recruiting corporations to join the "2026 large-small win-win AX leading model project," in partnership with LG CNS and Megazone to support the artificial intelligence transformation (AX) of domestic small and midsize manufacturing corporations.
The project applies the technology and capabilities of AI-specialized large corporations to small manufacturing corporations on the ground to support companywide AI transformation beyond process improvement.
Selected corporations can receive support for up to 12 months, including building data collection systems, applying AI models, and adopting cloud, as well as hardware such as automated guided vehicles (AGV), autonomous mobile robots (AMR), robotic equipment, and digital equipment conversion.
The project budget is up to 3 billion won. The government will fund 50% and large corporations 10%, providing up to 1.8 billion won, or 60% of the total project cost. The self-funding ratio for corporations is 40%, and in-kind allocation for labor costs and existing built facilities is allowed within 50% of the contribution.
LG CNS plans to support systematizing data from manufacturing sites and converting skilled workers' know-how into digital asset through the "Manufacturing AX Starter Package," which combines manufacturing execution capabilities with a manufacturing-specialized large language model (LLM).
Megazone plans to provide AI solutions focused on key challenges at manufacturing sites, such as predictive maintenance, collaborative robot adoption, and inspection automation. Using its own AI agent platform "Marl-E," it aims to enable AI transformation while maintaining existing systems.
Yang Chan-hoe, executive managing director at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, said, "Through this project, in which specialized corporations like LG CNS and Megazone are participating as the main executors, we will build AX models tailored to each manufacturing sector and expand them across the manufacturing industry to strengthen Korea's manufacturing competitiveness."
Corporations wishing to participate can apply through the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises website and the smart factory project management system, and a first-round evaluation will be conducted for corporations that apply by the 30th.