South Korea Adds AI for Biology and Brain-Computer Interfaces to the National SEED Program Through 2035

South Korea Adds AI for Biology and Brain-Computer Interfaces to the National SEED Program Through 2035

On August 12, the government presented SEED, a program covering seven technology areas over the next 10–20 years. Within the biology component, one development path begins with a model of cancer cells and leads to automated drug discovery. Another begins with translating brain signals and leads to text entry and device control.

The SEED document states that the government plans to create a model that predicts changes in cancer cells by 2028. By 2029, the authorities plan to deploy autonomous infrastructure for biological experiments, consisting of automated laboratory systems in which AI and robots help conduct and validate experiments.

The program links these tools to the discovery of drugs for serious diseases, cell and gene therapies, and biomanufacturing, which uses cells or microorganisms to produce required substances. By 2035, it aims to use AI and robots to make the discovery of such drugs ten times faster.

A separate part of the program covers brain-computer interfaces, a technology that converts brain signals into commands for a computer. By 2030, the authorities plan to develop and demonstrate the underlying technologies, including an algorithm that translates signals between the brain and a computer. By 2035, the program calls for commercial brain-computer interfaces that allow users to enter text through thought and control devices.

Yonhap confirms the date of the briefing and the goals of the biology component. The ministries must next prepare detailed roadmaps. The government must then monitor the projects through a meeting of science and technology ministers, establish a public-private working group, and revise regulations governing research and the commercialization of new technologies.