The South Korean government is starting a new project to develop advanced medical devices, with a plan to invest 940.8 billion won over seven years, from now until 2032. Of this, 838.3 billion won will come from the government’s budget. The main goal is to see if this funding leads to actual commercialization and exports of these devices.
This project is the second phase of a program that began in 2020. Four ministries will work together: the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The goal is to support the entire process of creating medical devices from design and development to mass production, market entry, and distribution.
The first phase of the project, which invested 947.9 billion won, helped 467 projects and resulted in 504 medical devices getting approvals both in South Korea and abroad.
The project will focus on creating "world-first" technologies, meaning devices that are recognized for being original and innovative, like a flexible endoscope with autonomous steering or a real-time brain-AI-robot system. It will also develop the most advanced medical devices, such as a whole-body PET scanner, a digital PCR device, and advanced radiation cancer treatment equipment.
In the second phase, 35.55 billion won will be spent on developing core medical technologies, supporting 68 projects in areas like software for medical devices, healthcare, medical robots, implants, and diagnostic tools. Some examples include a diagnostic system for brain diseases and a surgical assist robot. There will also be efforts to make essential medical devices locally in South Korea, focusing on 123 items that are currently not produced domestically, like ventilators for newborns and children.