South Korea has set out seven strategic technology programmes it intends to pursue after artificial intelligence, including an uncrewed Moon landing by 2030, President Lee Jae-myung announced on Wednesday at a meeting of scientists, executives and investors at the presidential office.
The programmes, branded the “Seven Major SEED”, cover small modular reactors, nuclear fusion, next-generation renewable energy, quantum technology, space and aviation, advanced biotechnology, and critical minerals.
The Moon landing falls under the space pillar and drew the most attention, though it is not new policy.
The 2030 target applies to an uncrewed mission: a roughly 700kg robotic lander, developed by a public-private consortium and launched on South Korea’s domestically built Nuri rocket, with a budget of around 444.7bn won.
The date itself was set in early July by the Korea AeroSpace Administration, which brought the target forward from 2032 at a meeting of the National Space Committee, alongside a plan for a domestic low-Earth-orbit satellite network by 2035. Wednesday’s announcement folded that existing target into a broader presidential technology package.
