South Korean AI and semiconductors meet Japanese robotics as business leaders from both countries expand cooperation on physical AI

[Financial News] The business communities of South Korea and Japan are moving to expand cooperation in future industries, with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. The plan is to combine South Korea’s AI and semiconductor technologies with Japan’s strengths in robotics and precision manufacturing to identify new business opportunities in the physical AI market. The two sides also agreed to strengthen economic security cooperation to jointly address the spread of global protectionism and the realignment of supply chains.
The Korea International Trade Association said it held the 6th Korea-Japan Economic Roundtable jointly with the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai) at the Trade Tower in Samseong-dong, Gangnam District, Seoul, on the 6th.
About 30 business leaders from the two countries attended the event, including Nam-jung Kim, vice chairman of the Korea-Japan Exchange Special Committee and chairman of Dongwon Group, and the co-chairs of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives’ Korea Committee, Masahiko Honma and Masaaki Muta.
The meeting was held under the theme “Advancing Korea-Japan Economic Cooperation in the AI Era and Global Trade Solidarity.” It focused on identifying future growth engines by leveraging the two countries’ industrial strengths and discussing ways to cooperate in response to changes in the global trade environment.
Physical AI and robotics were the key agenda items. In the first session, special professor Ji-pyeong Lee of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and Zen Intelligence CEO Hiroki Nozaki presented on the application of physical AI and robotics technologies in industry and ways for South Korea and Japan to cooperate.
Participants noted that combining South Korea’s AI and semiconductor technologies with Japan’s strengths in robotics and precision manufacturing could help boost manufacturing productivity and identify new business opportunities. They discussed ways to leverage the complementary industrial structures of the two countries, particularly in physical AI, where AI controls actual machines and robots.
Economic security cooperation to stabilize global supply chains was also a key agenda item. In the second session, CHANG Sang Sik, head of the Korea International Trade Association’s Institute for International Trade and Commerce, and Takashi Terada, a professor in the Department of Political Science at Doshisha University, presented strategies for the two countries to address the spread of protectionism and the realignment of supply chains.
The business communities of the two countries discussed ways to secure stable supply chains for industries such as AI that require semiconductors and key materials, as well as to jointly enter third-country markets. With global trade uncertainty mounting, they highlighted the need for companies in both countries to work together to reduce supply chain risks and expand business opportunities overseas.
The Korea-Japan Economic Roundtable is an official cooperation channel established by the Korea-Japan Exchange Special Committee, launched by the Korea International Trade Association in February 2024, and the Japan Association of Corporate Executives to strengthen private-sector cooperation between business leaders in the two countries. Since holding its first meeting in Tokyo in May of that year, the roundtable has met twice a year, alternating between South Korea and Japan.
Korea International Trade Association Chairman Jin-Shik Yun said, “The Korea-Japan Economic Roundtable has developed into a practical channel for cooperation between the business communities of the two countries,” adding, “I hope we will continue to achieve cooperation results in AI and economic security that companies in both countries can experience.”

[email protected] Kim Dong-ho Reporter