Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR, Minister JK Kim) hosted a Gwangju Future Mobility MINI Alliance roundtable in Gwangju on June 30, 2026. The meeting brought together automakers, suppliers, AI companies, universities, research institutes, and local governments to discuss how to develop a Manufacturing AI Transformation (M.AX) cluster and strengthen future mobility competitiveness.

The automobile industry has evolved beyond traditional manufacturing into a key advanced convergence industry, as AI, semiconductors, software, and data reshape its structure. It also remains a core regional industry that supports production, business competitiveness, and job creation, making it a key driver of regional growth under the Five Mega-Regions and Three Special Self-Governing Provinces (5+3) strategy. Gwangju has an automotive production base that brings together automakers and suppliers across the value chain. Its Cheomdan District 3 is also developing into an AI-centered industrial convergence cluster. Together, these strengths give Gwangju significant growth potential as a hub for M.AX in industrial complexes.

During the roundtable, speakers presented the Gwangju MINI Alliance’s plan to develop an M.AX cluster based on the region’s strengths. The plan centers on building a Future Mobility M.AX Cluster that would advance M.AX across the automotive value chain and lead the future vehicle industry ecosystem. It also calls for developing and testing AX models for specific processes, including vision inspection, predictive maintenance, and automated logistics, at pilot factories such as Gwangju Global Motors (GGM) and Alps Electric Korea, before rolling them out across local industrial complexes.

The discussion highlighted Gwangju’s distinct position as a region where automotive production sites and an AI industrial base are in proximity. Participants discussed using process, quality, and logistics data from Gwangju’s industrial complexes to develop AI models, then redeploying them on site to generate new manufacturing data, creating a virtuous cycle that supports process innovation.

Manufacturers need infrastructure that can store and use manufacturing data to link data and AI models reliably. A data center is being built in Cheomdan District 3 of Gwangju Innopolis, funded by the Industrial Complex Environment Improvement Fund. MOTIR will use the center to support manufacturers’ adoption of M.AX and develop it into core infrastructure for regional manufacturing innovation. It will also strengthen domestic capabilities to produce AI infrastructure equipment, helping to build an M.AX ecosystem where manufacturing innovation goes hand in hand with growth in the AI infrastructure industry.

Participants agreed to operate a governance framework that keeps manufacturers, AI companies, universities, and research institutes working together to develop an M.AX cluster centered on the Gwangju MINI Alliance. Building on this framework, they will expand M.AX across the automotive industry’s value chain. To ensure that M.AX takes hold in practice at industrial sites, the initiative will pair tailored AX support for resident companies with on-site workforce training. The results from Gwangju will be shared with other industrial complexes and the broader automobile industry, and developed into a region-led model for manufacturing innovation.

“In this new age of AI, M.AX has become essential for industrial survival. In the automobile industry, competitiveness depends on innovation across the value chain,” Minister JK Kim said. “If scaled beyond Gwangju, the successful model built on the city’s automotive ecosystem and AI infrastructure could serve as an important model for manufacturing innovation and help drive regional growth under the 5+3 strategy.”