Bae Choong-sik, a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, was selected as the 18th president of KAIST.
KAIST's board of directors said on the 29th that it held an extraordinary meeting at the KAIST Kim Jae-chul AI Graduate School Seoul Yangjae Industry-Academia Campus in Yangjae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, and selected Bae as the new president.
Bae, the new president, is an engineer who has researched eco-friendly energy and carbon-neutral power engineering. After graduating from the Department of Aeronautical Engineering at Seoul National University, Bae earned a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Imperial College London in the United Kingdom. Since joining KAIST in 1998, Bae has served as head of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and dean of the College of Engineering, and was recently selected as a chaired professor at Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) in recognition of research achievements in energy and carbon neutrality.
Bae has participated not only in on-campus research and teaching but also in activities related to national science and technology policy. During the spread of COVID-19, Bae served as Director General of the "COVID-19 Response Science and Technology New Deal Program Group," and also served as president of the Carbon-Neutral Fuel Technology Research Association. As a full member of The National Academy of Engineering of Korea and chair of the climate subcommittee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Science and Technology Diplomacy Advisory Committee, Bae was involved in discussions on energy transition and responses to the climate crisis.
In research, Bae was selected as a fellow in the powertrain division of SAE International and received the SAE Best Paper Award twice. In recognition of contributions to the development of the automobile industry and the strengthening of national competitiveness, Bae received a presidential commendation in 2021 and a commendation from the National Assembly of Korea in 2024. At KAIST, Bae also received the Research Award, Merit Award, and a special commendation as an outstanding faculty member in social service.
KAIST expects that Bae's research experience in energy and carbon neutrality and record of policy participation will contribute to convergent science and technology research and university administration going forward.
Bae is expected to be finalized as the 18th president of KAIST after consent from the Minister of Education and approval from the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT.