Quantum World Tour Returns with South Korea, Showcasing a Nation at the Beginning of Quantum Scale-Up

Insider Brief:

• The Quantum World Tour will host its South Korea episode on January 28, 2026, bringing together government, research, industry, and startups to examine how the country is scaling its national quantum ecosystem.

• South Korea is advancing a coordinated quantum strategy led by the Ministry of Science and ICT, with public research institutes, universities, and industrial partners aligning research, commercialization, and workforce development.

• The session will feature briefings on national strategy, expert panels on science and scale, startup showcases, and a dedicated discussion on building quantum talent.

• To register, visit AI for Good – Quantum World Tour: South Korea.

The Quantum World Tour, a global initiative launched by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in partnership with The Quantum Insider, will host its next episode on January 28, 2025, spotlighting South Korea, a nation where advanced research, industrial leadership, and national strategy converge to accelerate quantum development.

The South Korea episode will take place online from 07:00 to 09:00 CET, hosted on the AI for Good Neural Network and live-streamed on YouTube. This 120-minute session will explore how South Korea is translating long-term public investment, industrial participation, and workforce development into a coordinated and scalable quantum ecosystem.

South Korea’s Quantum Ecosystem: Strategy, Science, and Scale

South Korea has emerged as one of the most deliberate and structured builders of quantum capability in Asia. With a strong foundation in advanced electronics, telecommunications, and applied physics, the country is positioning quantum technologies as a strategic pillar of its digital and industrial future.

The Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) has established dedicated leadership for quantum technologies, supporting national programs that span research infrastructure, international collaboration, and commercialization pathways. Public research institutes such as the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) and the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) are advancing work across quantum measurement, computing, and communications, while major industrial players integrate quantum capabilities into telecom and digital platforms.

Academic institutions, including the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), are scaling graduate education and research capacity to support long-term workforce needs. In parallel, a growing cohort of startups is translating laboratory expertise into early commercial offerings, reinforcing South Korea’s model of close coordination between government, academia, and industry.

Together, these efforts reflect a national approach focused on execution: aligning policy, research, and industry to move quantum technologies from strategy into deployed capability.

Agenda Highlights

The South Korea episode of the Quantum World Tour will feature:

• Opening remarks introducing South Korea’s role in the 2026 Quantum World Tour
  
• A national quantum strategy briefing by Ju Seop Sim, Director of the Quantum Technology Division, Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT)
  
• An ecosystem overview presented by Cierra Lunde, Director of Strategic Content at The Quantum Insider
  
• A panel discussion on strategy, science, and scale, featuring Jinhee Kim (KRISS), Jungjin Ju (ETRI), and Jun-Young SEO (SK Telecom)
  
• A startup showcase highlighting emerging Korean quantum companies, including Jay Kim (Qunova Computing), Natasha Kovacs (SDT Inc.), and Seung-Hwan Kwak (Genesis Quantum)
  
• A panel on workforce development, featuring representatives Jaewan Kim (KRISS) and Eunseong Kim (KAIST), moderated by Cierra Lunde

About the Quantum World Tour

Launched during the 2025 AI for Good Global Summit, the Quantum World Tour is a collaboration between the ITU and The Quantum Insider. The series will feature country-specific episodes, each blending ecosystem briefings, expert discussion, startup showcases, and workforce initiatives. Designed as a “living blueprint” for ecosystem building, the Tour will highlight how nations are translating vision into infrastructure, talent, and commercialization.

Following South Korea, future stops will include Canada, Poland, Ghana, the UAE, and many others. The Quantum World Tour is free to attend. To register, visit AI for Good – Quantum World Tour: South Korea.