Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR, Minister JK Kim) and Seoul National University (SNU, President Ryu Hong-lim) signed an MOU on November 24, 2025, to strengthen cooperation between SNU and the M.AX Alliance. Launched by MOTIR and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) in September 2025, the M.AX Alliance includes more than 1,000 participating organizations, including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor Company, and Rainbow Robotics. MOTIR previously announced that through the Alliance, the government aims to innovate manufacturing processes and foster new industries such as humanoids, generating more than KRW 100 trillion in added value by 2030 and positioning Korea as a global leader in Manufacturing AX.

SNU to Fully Participate in the M.AX Alliance

With this MOU, SNU is expected to begin fully participating in the M.AX Alliance’s core programs, particularly in AI model development, manufacturing data utilization, and talent development.

❶ SNU will jointly develop AI models for humanoids, autonomous vehicles, and AI factories with manufacturing companies in the Alliance. The companies will provide SNU with the data and platforms—including robots, vehicles, and factories—needed for developing AI models in each field. The developed AI models will then be supplied back to the companies for integration into their products and factories. MOTIR recently launched related R&D projects to support this initiative.

❷ SNU and the M.AX Alliance will cooperate on manufacturing data utilization. The two will develop a plan by early 2026 for the joint use of manufacturing data secured through their respective R&D activities and projects such as the AI Factory. The plan will outline methods for preprocessing, standardizing, and anonymizing data for use in AI model development and demonstration. To support this, MOTIR will develop and implement a program in 2026 to establish and operate a manufacturing data repository.

❸ SNU and the Alliance will also work closely on talent development. MOTIR will leverage industry–academia cooperation projects and talent development programs to create opportunities for outstanding SNU students to participate in Alliance activities. Under the MOU, the SNU Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation will select promising students and provide them with opportunities to participate in R&D projects and internship programs within the Alliance.

Next Steps

Following the MOU, SNU and MOTIR will expand discussions through one-on-one collaboration between SNU’s six specialized research institutes and corresponding M.AX Alliance subcommittees.
Minister JK (Jung-Kwan) Kim stated, “Once the world-class manufacturing capabilities of M.AX Alliance companies combine with SNU’s creative research and outstanding talent, the vision of becoming the world’s leading Manufacturing AX nation will be well within reach.”