Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.
Experts discuss solutions for crisis-stricken domestic industries at Korea Forum
Seung Myung-ho, chairman of The Korea Times and its sister paper the Hankook Ilbo, gives opening remarks at The Korea Forum 2025 in central Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-suk
By Lee Gyu-lee
Facing challenges from China’s rapidly advancing technologies across industries and heightened U.S. trade restrictions, businesses in Korea are under mounting pressure to come up with proactive, forward-looking strategies.
In light of this, The Korea Forum, co-hosted by The Korea Times and its sister paper the Hankook Ilbo, invited experts to discuss practical solutions to help Korea’s key industries — semiconductors, carmaking, steel and shipbuilding — navigate these crises.
At the forum in central Seoul on Tuesday, Sungkyunkwan University professor Kwon Seok-joon highlighted how the local semiconductor sector must adapt to intensifying competition from countries like China and Taiwan.
He stressed semiconductor memory companies should pivot toward customized and hybrid memory products to stay ahead of the curve and position themselves as irreplaceable players.
The professor noted that with AI conversion across industries, the focus would shift from graphics processing units to neural processing units and tensor processing units.
“Given that Korea still has capabilities and expertise in specialized memory, I believe there is ample opportunity (for local companies) to tap into this evolving market,” he said.
Sungkyunkwan University professor Kwon Seok-joon speaks during The Korea Forum 2025 in central Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-suk
Kang Nam-hoon, CEO of the Korea Automobile & Mobility Association, emphasized the domestic car industry must brace for the global push for electric and autonomous vehicles.
“The industry is undergoing a major transformation and technological revolution. The global landscape has been restructuring based on which companies and countries are at the head of this change,” he said, calling for the government to create a framework for companies to pursue electric vehicles (EV).
“The government should create a regulatory environment that effectively mandates the transition to EVs, while simultaneously offering incentives such as subsidies and investments … which will drive robust innovation.”
Noting that developing self-driving smart cars comes down to AI technology, Kang said bold moves are required to stay in the competition.
“Companies like Tesla and some Chinese firms are already at the forefront of this transformation. Hyundai, for instance, has been investing heavily, but the results still place it in the middle,” he said. “The key challenge now is how to rapidly move up into the top tier in this sector to secure leadership.”
Regarding steel, Kwon Hyo-jae, CEO of COR Energy Insight, emphasized the need for the industry to innovate by leveraging the country’s deep expertise and experience.
He explained that the steel sector must explore new markets and enhance production through advanced technologies such as AI.
“By integrating AI-driven analytics with our existing know-how and data, we can optimize processes and create higher-value products, helping us stay competitive globally,” Kwon said.
The forum also featured sessions to discuss economic and policy aspects to respond to the global crisis, as well as Korea's AI competitiveness and entrepreneurship innovation.