The National Science Museum (Director Lee Eun-young) will hold ‘2026 TechConE (3rd edition): Defense Tech NEXT’, a public science and culture festival themed on defense science and technology, for three days from October 15 to 17. Held across the museum grounds including Science Hall and Kkumi Plaza, the event is open to everyone free of charge.
 [코리안투데이] The main poster for ‘2026 TechConE: Defense Tech NEXT’ © 장형임 기자 |
The National Science Museum announced that it will hold ‘2026 TechConE (3rd edition): Defense Tech NEXT’ from Thursday, October 15, to Saturday, October 17. Admission is free, and registration is accepted on a first-come, first-served basis through the museum website (www.science.go.kr).
TechConE is a festival designed to combine cutting-edge technological innovation with culture and the arts so that visitors can experience it in an easy and enjoyable way. Following the first edition on robots (last April) and the second on artificial intelligence (last September), this edition takes ‘defense technology’ as its theme. Rather than a weapons-focused exhibition, it is distinctive for translating the scientific principles hidden within defense technology into everyday language for the public. This event brings together the 32nd Infantry Division, Yuseong-gu Office, the Agency for Defense Development, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, the Air Force Academy, the Army Personnel Command, Satrec Initiative Co., Ltd., and bHaptics Inc., forming a showcase of civilian-government-military cooperation.
On the first day, October 15, following an opening video declaring that young people are the leading players of future defense science and technology, an interactive talk show titled ‘Defense Tech Summit: A Conversation Among Giants’ will be held, featuring the director of the National Science Museum, the head of Yuseong-gu Office, a KAIST professor, an official from the 32nd Infantry Division, and the head of the research division at the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute. KAIST professor Kim Dae-sik and broadcaster Ji Sang-ryeol will then give a lecture and talk concert on the theme of ‘The Future Battlefield and Human Life to Be Transformed by AI and Brain Science’.
On the second day, October 16, a ‘Real Military Talk’ will feature broadcaster Choi Young-jae, an official from the 505th Infantry Brigade under the 32nd Infantry Division, and three experts from the Air Force Academy, the Agency for Defense Development, and Boramae Medical Center. Sungkyunkwan University professor Kim Beom-jun and writer Kwak Jae-sik, together with broadcaster Kim Yong-myeong, will host an entertainment-style talk show titled ‘The Absurd but Well-Grounded, Delightful General Assembly of Defense Science’, answering visitors’ imagined matchups with the laws of physics. There will also be ‘Chatter of the Military Buffs’, in which military YouTubers Lee Se-hwan (Charle’s Military Research Institute) and Tae Sang-ho (Tae Sang-ho’s Military Talk) give lectures on drone warfare and future warfare and talk with visitors. This segment includes a ‘Fandom Show-Off Time’ in which participants introduce their prized possessions, and an on-site vote to select the ‘Best Military Buff of the Year’; advance registration for military-buff participation is accepted until Wednesday, September 30.
On the final day, October 17, the program continues with a military science magic show by a science magic performance team, ‘Make Them Laugh or Die! The Defense Comedy Big League!’ pitting comedians Park Kyung-ho and Lee Jung-soo against each other, a lecture by broadcaster Sun Kim (Kim Sun-young) titled ‘Defense Tech NEXT Seen Through Past War History’, a real-time survival quiz show ‘Military Golden Bell!’ in which all participants compete, and a finale performance by the Republic of Korea Army Military Band.
At the exhibition and hands-on booths running throughout the event, the 32nd Infantry Division will display actual military equipment such as wheeled armored vehicles, chemical-biological-radiological reconnaissance vehicles, reconnaissance drones, military police motorcycles, and explosive ordnance disposal equipment in the outdoor plaza, allowing visitors to board and experience them firsthand. Visitors can try on the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials’ wearable robot (muscle suit), watch a demonstration of an exploration rover built by a KAIST undergraduate robotics club, and take part in the Korea Aerospace Research Institute’s ‘Build a Nuri Rocket Kit’ activity. A display of a full-scale satellite model by Satrec Initiative Co., Ltd. and a VR·FPS combat game experience booth by bHaptics Inc. will also be set up.
A variety of experiences await family visitors as well. These include ‘Future Battlefield Laser Tag’ using laser weapon systems, a team-based ‘Drone Ball Soccer Match’, ‘Real Fortress’ for infants and children, ‘Future Weapon 3D Printing’ that turns weapons drawn by participants into 3D-printed objects, and camouflage-cream face painting. A prize drawing event for participants will also be held, and the detailed daily schedule can be found on the museum website.
The event focuses on letting citizens see and touch advanced defense science and technology to understand it for themselves. In particular, it spans diverse fields such as weapons-system and platform development, the convergence of advanced information and communication technology (ICT), and materials and energy, and is designed to show future generations the possibilities of careers in science and engineering.
Lee Eun-young, director of the National Science Museum, said, ‘This event is the fruit of civilian-government-military cooperation involving defense and research institutions such as the Agency for Defense Development, KAIST and the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, along with the 32nd Infantry Division, and we hope citizens will see and feel firsthand that defense technology is not merely weaponry but a concentration of state-of-the-art science and technology that keeps our society safe.’ She added, ‘We hope it will be an occasion that shows future generations the possibilities of new science and engineering careers across diverse fields such as weapons-system and platform development, advanced ICT convergence, and materials and energy.’
지역 홍보대사 신청 기자양성과정 신청 코리안투데이 지부장 신청 코리안투데이 인천강화
THE KOREAN TODAY × WIA CODE
이 기사의 WIA Code
WIA Code 스캐너로 비추면 인터넷 없이 발행 사실과 위·변조 여부를 확인할 수 있습니다.
휴대폰 기본 카메라로 찍으면 스캐너 안내 페이지가 열립니다 — 기사 바로 열기
움직이는 코드(스트림) 한 장에 기사 전문(사진 포함)이 담겨 있습니다 — WIA Code 스캐너로 약 30초 비추면 폰에 저장되어 인터넷 없이도 읽을 수 있습니다. Stream.mp4 도 여기서 받습니다.
WIA Code · 코리안투데이
Leave a Reply