A tiltrotor aircraft developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute. [Herald DB]
A tiltrotor aircraft developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute. [Herald DB]

The Daedeok Research and Development Special Zone headquarters of the Research and Development Special Zone Foundation announced it will co-host the "2026 Daedeok Innopolis Aerospace Innovation Forum" with the Korea Aerospace Research Institute at Daejeon Science Complex on Monday.

The forum was organized to strengthen ties between companies and research institutions in the aerospace sector — one of Daedeok Innopolis's strategic industries — and to share information on the technology commercialization process, from public technology transfer through demonstration to full commercialization, along with success stories from aerospace companies based in the zone.

The event will feature presentations on the Korea Aerospace Research Institute's technology transfer procedures and corporate partnership programs, Daedeok Innopolis's technology commercialization support projects and systems, and success stories from aerospace and defense companies that have grown by leveraging those resources.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute will outline its technology transfer procedures and corporate partnership programs, and share the operating direction and participation details for an "Aerospace and Defense Open Innovation" initiative it plans to launch jointly with the Special Zone Foundation in November.

The Daedeok Innopolis headquarters will introduce key support programs available to zone-based companies — including research institute spin-offs and advanced technology firms — covering a regional innovation demonstration project that helps businesses verify technologies and advance commercialization.

Companies that have grown by making use of the zone's support projects and programs will also present their experiences.

Kwon Ki-jung, chief executive of Narma and a former Korea Aerospace Research Institute researcher who founded the company in 2018, will describe how he registered it as the institute's first spin-off through a technology equity contribution and went on to develop and commercialize an electric small tiltrotor drone using the research institute company program and the zone's R&D nurturing project.

Narma was registered as the Korea Aerospace Research Institute's first spin-off company (No. 671) through a technology equity contribution tied to the institute's tiltrotor aircraft technology, and has since pursued commercialization through the zone's R&D nurturing project and other programs.

The company became the world's first to commercialize an electric small tiltrotor drone; its flagship products, the AF100 and AF200, are capable of vertical takeoff and landing as well as high-speed horizontal flight.

An aerial view of Daedeok Innopolis. [Herald DB]
An aerial view of Daedeok Innopolis. [Herald DB]

Hwang In-seol, a manager at Link Nine System, will present how the company, based in Daedeok Innopolis, developed defense software including ground-forces tactical data links and grew by drawing on the zone's research and industrial ecosystem, and how it used a Daedeok Innopolis demonstration project to verify its technology in an actual operating environment and connect that work to commercialization.

Link Nine System plans to build an integrated software-hardware prototype and verify message transmission and reception, processing performance, and stability on a simulated tactical network and weapons-system testbed.

Through the two companies' cases, attendees will be able to trace in concrete detail the full path from public-technology-based startup and use of the research institute company program, through regional innovation demonstration planning, to follow-on commercialization via scale-up R&BD projects.

The Daedeok Innopolis headquarters said it plans to use the forum as a springboard to expand exchanges between aerospace companies and research institutions and to actively support collaboration leading to public technology transfer, joint research and commercialization partnerships.

"For the aerospace industry to grow, it is vital that research institutions with outstanding technology and innovative companies keep meeting to find opportunities for collaboration," said Lim Moon-taek, head of the Daedeok Innopolis headquarters. "We will continue to expand industry-research exchanges in the aerospace sector within Daedeok Innopolis and strengthen the cooperative foundation so that public technology can lead to commercialization and corporate growth."


nbgkoo@heraldcorp.com