Interview with Kim Jong-pil, head of LIG D&A's satellite payload research institute

Company advancing wideband, high-resolution SAR at early stage of global development

Future warfare to see satellites autonomously handle entire strike process from space

AI essential for autonomous recognition, target detection and self-driving capabilities

Two-track export strategy: global supply chain entry and customized package deals

Kim Jong-pil, executive vice president and head of LIG D&A's satellite payload research institute. [LIG D&A]
Kim Jong-pil, executive vice president and head of LIG D&A's satellite payload research institute. [LIG D&A]

"LIG Defense & Aerospace (D&A) is concentrating its capabilities in the payload sector, advancing the development of wideband, high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) — a field that remains in its early stages even globally."

Kim Jong-pil, executive vice president and head of LIG D&A's satellite payload research institute, made the remarks in a written interview with The Herald Business on Tuesday, saying foundational research is currently underway and that "meaningful results will emerge within the next few years." Kim is a satellite technology specialist who joined LG Innotek — LIG D&A's predecessor — in 2000 and has since served as head of the radar research laboratory, director of the satellite SAR development division, and head of the satellite systems research institute.

'Future weapons to evolve into satellite-based, space-missile strike systems'

SAR is a technology that fires radar from the air toward the ground or sea and synthesizes the reflected signals to produce high-resolution imagery. Kim said it is important to examine how future weapons will develop, noting that guided munitions increasingly require enhanced automatic recognition, autonomous target detection and self-driving capabilities. "Ultimately, guided weapons will evolve into a satellite-based, space-missile composite strike system," he said.

Where the conventional approach relied on humans to locate targets and decide when to launch missiles, the defining feature of future warfare is that satellites in space will carry out the entire process automatically. SAR is widely regarded as the technology with the greatest synergy with AI, precisely because AI is indispensable for interpreting the vast and complex data that SAR collects around the clock.

"As the resolution of satellite imagery improves, the volume of data being transmitted to the ground is growing enormously, and the time required to receive and process that data on the ground is also increasing," Kim said.

He added that developing onboard edge computing — technology that allows satellites to analyze data independently — alongside a database trained on satellite-processed imagery to enable automatic target detection and identification directly from the satellite would make it possible to build an ultra-low-latency system. "That would allow for faster strike decisions," he said.

SAR is also a core business priority for LIG D&A, which is preparing to grow from a company centered on guided weapons and radar into a comprehensive defense firm that also encompasses aerospace. The company's name, changed in January, reflects that ambition: D&A stands for "Defense" and "Aerospace."

'Major synergies expected with global big data platforms and guided weapons'

Aerospace cooperation with global companies is also expected to accelerate. Kim said that combining data analytics platforms such as Palantir with LIG D&A's strengths in SAR and electronic warfare "could generate major synergies in satellite image processing, battlefield situational awareness and guided-weapon integration." LIG D&A is currently co-developing an integrated air defense network and unmanned systems solution with Palantir. In 2024, the two companies signed an MOU on the use of a weapons-system big data platform.

Kim added that the company is continuing cooperation discussions with leading global aerospace firms, including Airbus D&S of Germany, Thales Alenia Space (TAS) — a joint venture between Italy's Leonardo and France's Thales — L3Harris of the United States, and ICEYE, a Finnish space-intelligence company.

Kim described the company's export strategy as two-track: entering global value chains and country-specific export supply chains through partnerships with global firms, and pursuing composite export packages through joint development with local companies.

Kim also offered a broader policy recommendation, saying that "at a time when multifaceted investment is needed for national security and public safety, there is a pressing need to think carefully about how to allocate limited fiscal resources and time as efficiently as possible." He questioned whether every technology and asset must be secured through government budgets, or how else they might be obtained. "The division of roles among government, the military and industry must be well coordinated to that end," he added.

Kim is scheduled to deliver a lecture on the direction of national space development in the era of K-New Space at the Herald Business Forum 2026, to be held at the Shilla Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Sept. 29.


klee@heraldcorp.com