- 450 companies and organizations from 17 countries gather at COEX, Seoul, April 24 (Thu)–26 (Sat)

- Extensive program features a global ICT conference, export consultations, and more

- Held alongside the “2025 ICT Tech Commercialization Festival” and the “ITRC Human Resource Development Festival 2025”

The Ministry of Science and ICT (Minister Yoo Sang-im, hereinafter "MSIT") announced the official opening of the 2025 World IT Show (WIS 2025), Korea’s largest exhibition of cutting-edge information and communication technologies (ICT). The event runs for three days from April 24 (Thursday) to April 26 (Saturday) at COEX in Seoul.

Launched in 2008, the World IT Show integrated a series of legacy ICT exhibitions—such as KIECO, SEK, and EXPO-COMM—held since 1981. It has since become Korea’s largest ICT exhibition, serving as a key platform for sharing the latest trends and envisioning the digital future.

The event is hosted by MSIT and organized by the Korea Association for ICT Promotion, Korea Economic Daily, COEX, Electronic Times, Korea International Trade Association, K.Fairs, the National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA), the Institute for Information & Communications Technology Planning & Evaluation (IITP), and the ITRC (Information Technology Research Center) Council, with sponsorship from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. This year’s show spans 7,500 pyeong (approximately 24,800 square meters), featuring 450 exhibitors from 17 countries.

Participating companies include global industry leaders such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, SK Telecom, KT, Hyundai Motor, and Samsung SDS, along with promising AI startups like FuriosaAI and Telechips, forming a diverse lineup of exhibitors from 17 countries.

WIS 2025 is held in tandem with the 2025 ICT Tech Commercialization Festival, which promotes the transition of public R&D outcomes into commercial markets, and the ITRC Human Resource Development Festival 2025, which showcases outstanding research from Korea’s university-based ICT research centers. The combined exhibition provides a rare opportunity to experience achievements spanning academia, research institutes, and the private sector in a single venue.

This year’s exhibition is themed “Driving Digital Transformation with AI, Leading the Future with Science & Technology.” It presents how AI is reshaping not only industries but also human cognition and lifestyles, signaling a sweeping societal transformation. Attendees will have the opportunity to explore immersive displays of emerging AI technologies and hear from industry leaders at the accompanying global ICT conference.

The opening-day conference, beginning at 1:00 p.m., features keynote speeches by:
Taehee Lee, Head of AI Research at Samsung SDS, on “The Dawn of the Agentic AI Era: Preparing for Sustainable Growth”
Yongshik Shin, Vice President of SK Telecom, on “AI Transformation Driven by AI Agents”
Qasar Younis, CEO of Applied Intuition, a global leader in autonomous vehicle software, on “Navigating the Road Ahead: The future of AI and automotive software”

In addition to these keynotes, industry experts will discuss AI’s influence on daily life, enterprise solutions, and innovations in cloud-based resource sharing.

To support the growth of digital startups and innovators, WIS 2025 includes export consultations with global buyers, investment networking sessions, new product & technology presentations, and awards programs recognizing outstanding achievements in digital technology.

At the opening ceremony, MSIT presented the ImpaCT-ech Award for excellence in digital convergence technologies. Samsung Electronics received the Presidential Award for developing a hardware accelerator and neural network optimization software that enables large-scale generative AI to run on-device. Six companies, including NationA, which developed a generative AI service for rapidly creating 3D motion data, were honored with the MSIT Minister’s Award.

The WIS Innovation Awards, presented to outstanding startups and emerging tech firms, were awarded to four companies. Among them was ArtygenSpace, recognized for its real-time digital reading platform combining generative AI with augmented reality to innovate traditional print media.

Running through Saturday, April 26, WIS 2025 also features a variety of additional events, including briefings on overseas market entry strategies, special networking sessions for foreign diplomats in Korea, and business support programs for ICT companies.

Minister Yoo Sang-im stated, “Korea has swiftly laid the groundwork to become one of the world’s top three AI powers. Last September, we launched the National AI Committee, and we recently enacted the world’s second AI Basic Act. Currently, KRW 1.8 trillion from the general budget is being invested in AI, and if the supplementary budget under review by the National Assembly is passed, this figure will rise to a record-breaking KRW 3.6 trillion.”

He added, “As the ICT industry undergoes a rapid transformation centered on AI, we will concentrate our efforts on accelerating the commercialization of R&D outcomes to drive tangible economic growth. Furthermore, we are committed to elevating next year’s World IT Show into a truly global exhibition that showcases the most advanced ICT technologies and solutions.”

For further information, please contact the Public Relations Division (Phone: +82-44-202-4034, E-mail: msitmedia@korea.kr) of the Ministry of Science and ICT.


※ Please refer to the attached PDF.