Korea unveils plan to transform regional universities into tech hubs

South Korea's Ministry of Education announced a plan to select three flagship national universities for intensive support, aiming to transform them into regional tech hubs linked to strategic industries and AI. The initiative, part of the "10 Seoul National Universities" strategy, will provide concentrated funding for undergraduate, graduate, and research programs tied to regional growth engines.

d Korea’s push to rebalance growth beyond the capital region took a major step forward Wednesday as the government unveiled a plan to select three flagship national universities for intensive support, aiming to transform them into regional powerhouses tied directly to strategic industries and artificial intelligence AI . The Ministry of Education said that it finalized its 2026 package support university selection plan during an interagency meeting at Government Complex Sejong. The initiative is part of the government’s “10 Seoul National Universities” strategy, which seeks to strengthen flagship national universities as hubs linking industry, academia, research institutions and local governments. Under the plan, three universities will be chosen this year for concentrated support across undergraduate education, graduate programs and research institutes connected to regional growth engines and AI development. The ministry said the selected universities, together with partner institutions participating in a regional university-sharing system, are expected to receive roughly 100 bi