AI to maintain weapons before they break down... NAVER Cloud teams up with ROKA

[Financial News] NAVER Cloud is joining forces with the Army Logistics Command to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) across military logistics, including procurement, maintenance and distribution. The two sides will jointly develop and test technologies for use in actual military logistics operations, from an AI-based procurement platform to weapon-system failure prediction and digital-twin logistics. NAVER Cloud is expanding the AI and cloud capabilities it has built up in the defense sector to military logistics operations, moving ahead in earnest with defense AI transformation (AX) projects.
According to industry sources on the 2nd, NAVER Cloud signed an MOU on “Optimizing the Future Battlefield Environment and Strengthening Practical AI Logistics Capabilities” on October 30 at the Army Logistics Command in Daejeon. Senior officials from both organizations attended the signing ceremony, including Army Logistics Command chief Lt. Gen. Chun-sik Park and NAVER Cloud CEO Yuwon Kim.
The Army Logistics Command oversees all aspects of ROKA logistics, including supply, maintenance and transportation. As new weapon systems such as manned-unmanned systems and drones proliferate on future battlefields, there is growing demand for the logistics systems that support them to transition to data- and AI-based operations as well.
The two organizations plan to jointly develop and test AI services for use in military logistics operations. Key projects include a military-specific platform that uses performance-based AI matching to procure needed supplies; condition-based maintenance (CBM+), which analyzes weapon-system status data to perform maintenance before breakdowns; and digital-twin-based smart logistics and smart factories.
NAVER Cloud will support consulting on the use of graphics processing unit (GPU) infrastructure and the development of a cloud platform tailored to military logistics. Forward-deployed engineers (FDEs) will work on site to develop AI agents for military logistics that automate repetitive tasks, and identify additional AI use cases based on logistics data. The company also plans to support AI talent development in military logistics, as well as platform operations and upgrades.
NAVER Cloud is also expanding its partnerships in the defense sector. This year, it jointly developed a defense-specific AI model with Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and took part in the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s AX hub project with Korea University’s C5ISRT Convergence Research Center. Last September, it held a “Defense AI Strategy Seminar” attended by around 550 officials from the Ministry of National Defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the services, and presented a defense AX cooperation model in which the military retains control over data and AI models while rapidly fielding civilian technologies.
“Logistics is an area where vast amounts of data move in real time, from procurement to maintenance and transportation, and where the impact of AI transformation can be greatest,” said Yuwon Kim, CEO of NAVER Cloud. “Together with the Army Logistics Command, we will build a practical AI logistics model validated in the field and contribute to building the Republic of Korea’s military AX ecosystem.”
[email protected] Jang Min-kwon Reporter