[Investing 45.2 trillion KRW next year: South Korea's two departments advancing three major projects in physical AI, semiconductors, and data centers] Odaily Planet Daily News: South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of Science and ICT will invest 45.217 trillion KRW next year to advance three major projects: physical AI, semiconductors, and data centers. Among them, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has a budget of 37.261 trillion KRW, while the Ministry of Science and ICT has a budget of 7.956 trillion KRW. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will allocate 7.628 trillion KRW to promote AI transformation in manufacturing, focusing on data acquisition in manufacturing sites, development of foundational AI models, popularization of domestically produced humanoid robots, and the establishment of ecosystems for key components, materials, and equipment. Additionally, 15.541 trillion KRW will be allocated to support semiconductors, and 43 billion KRW will be used for AI data center technology and talent cultivation. The Ministry of Science and ICT will invest 1.337 trillion KRW in physical AI, developing general physical AI foundational models and conducting logistics demonstrations with Korea Post. Investments in semiconductors and data centers will amount to 1.35 trillion KRW and 2.229 trillion KRW, respectively, including the construction of a 10-megawatt AI data center testing platform. (ZDNet)