The Public Procurement Service (PPS, Administrator Baek Seung-bo) visited artificial intelligence (AI) industry sites in Seoul on the 16th to hear the difficulties faced by companies and to discuss ways to support the growth of the AI industry through public procurement and to reform related systems. The aim is to make public procurement the ‘first market’ for innovative AI companies, thereby backing technology demonstration and the expansion of sales channels.
 [코리안투데이] 조달청 AI 로봇 산업 현장에서 K 공공조달 추진 방향 모색 © 장형임 기자 |
The PPS announced that Administrator Baek Seung-bo visited the Seoul area on the 16th to listen to views from AI industry sites and to discuss measures for supporting industrial growth through public procurement, as well as tasks for institutional reform. The visit was arranged to directly confirm on-the-ground voices and to identify improvement tasks for procurement innovation, in order to help AI companies in the Seoul and Gyeonggi regions enter and grow in the public procurement market.
Administrator Baek first visited Torooc Co., Ltd., a company specializing in AI humanoid robots, where he observed a demonstration of the AI social robot ‘LiKU’ and discussed corporate difficulties and requests for improvement with the company’s executives and staff. ‘LiKU’ stands for ‘Like you, Link you,’ and is a robot capable of recognizing human faces, holding voice conversations, and expressing emotions. It is used in various public settings such as daycare centers, schools, care institutions, and science museums, and the company has earned recognition for its technological capabilities by participating in the PPS’s pilot purchase program for innovative products and in overseas demonstration projects.
 [코리안투데이] 조달청 AI 로봇 산업 현장에서 K 공공조달 추진 방향 모색 © 장형임 기자 |
At the site that day, discussions were held on institutional reform tasks that companies feel directly, including making the evaluation criteria for AI innovation products more realistic, expanding demonstration opportunities through pilot purchases, and improving cost-calculation standards to reflect initial costs such as research and development expenses. This reflected on-the-ground demands to quickly lower the barriers to entry, and the PPS plans to swiftly pursue related institutional reforms in step with the rapid pace of change in the AI industry.
 [코리안투데이] 조달청 AI 로봇 산업 현장에서 K 공공조달 추진 방향 모색 © 장형임 기자 |
Administrator Baek then held a luncheon and discussion with MZ-generation employees of the Seoul Regional Procurement Office, exchanging views on the direction of organizational culture and on improving the way they work. He also continued the conversation on the government’s AI and semiconductor policies, such as the three major mega-projects recently being pursued, the role of procurement administration, and measures to strengthen AI utilization capabilities. Administrator Baek said, “No organization can advance without change and innovation, and change and innovation begin with the members’ interest in and affection for the organization,” adding a call for “active interest and participation regarding the diversely changing procurement environment, so that MZ-generation employees can become agents of change and the PPS can always stay awake.”
 [코리안투데이] 조달청 AI 로봇 산업 현장에서 K 공공조달 추진 방향 모색 © 장형임 기자 |
At a field communication meeting attended that day by the Korea Artificial Intelligence Association and AI-sector procurement companies, participants discussed measures to reform systems for the AI industry’s entry into and growth in the public procurement market, as well as procurement-related difficulties and suggestions. The PPS decided to quickly grasp the points raised at the meeting and to actively review them so that on-the-ground voices are faithfully reflected in the process of devising institutional reforms and support measures.
Public procurement is a market worth hundreds of trillions of won annually, and for innovative companies that struggle to secure early sales channels, it serves as a priming water that lets them demonstrate their technology and build a track record. The PPS’s announcement that it will overhaul entry barriers such as evaluation criteria and cost calculation is read as an intention to widen the passage through which early-stage AI companies can use the public market as a stepping stone to leap beyond the domestic market and into overseas markets.
 [코리안투데이] 조달청 AI 로봇 산업 현장에서 K 공공조달 추진 방향 모색 © 장형임 기자 |
PPS Administrator Baek Seung-bo said, “AI is a future growth engine of our economy and a core of national competitiveness,” adding, “The PPS will actively provide support so that public procurement can fulfill its role in helping AI companies demonstrate innovative technologies and expand sales channels by becoming their first market.” He continued, “By always listening to on-the-ground voices and continuously improving unreasonable regulations, we will actively support AI companies so that they can use the public procurement market as priming water to leap not only into the domestic market but into the global market as well.”
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