韩国农业AI转型战略启动

面对全球农业多重挑战，多国加速布局农业人工智能，韩国推出国家级农业农村AI转型战略（AX），将AI视为农业发展的核心基石。在政策支持下，韩国农食科技融资激增至2.53亿美元，AI与先进技术全面渗透种植、养殖、加工和物流等环节。耕地有限、人口老龄化的需求，也促使该国大力发展智慧农业，并同步推进生物科技，全力解决行业难题。

注：第一部分为英文文章及音频，第二部分为中英双语文章，后附重点词汇注解

（本文仅用于学习用途，For non-commercial educational use only）

South Korea says ‘AI is no longer a choice’ as agrifoodtech funding jumps 171%

From: AFN

South Korea unveils new plans to integrate AI into agriculture, joining recent national initiatives from India, the UAE, Saudi Arabia to help farmers navigate climate change, war impacts, trade tensions, and unpredictable supply chains.

South Korea’s ambitions are embodied in the Agriculture and Rural Artificial Intelligence Transformation (AX) strategy, jointly announced by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Science and ICT.

The plan aims to make AI more accessible to growers of all sizes by expanding smart farm models to small- and mid-sized operations, in addition to large enterprises. Shared machinery centers, “smart” processing centers, and AI-based livestock grading tools are also in development.

“AI is no longer a choice but a core foundation that will determine the survival and future competitiveness of agriculture and rural communities,” Agriculture Minister Song Mi-ryung said. “We will make 2026 a starting point for agricultural AX to overcome challenges such as climate change and a rapidly aging population.”

South Korea’s ambitions extend beyond farming. It also aims to become one of the world’s top biotech economies by 2030, with a framework in place to support industry growth. Earlier this year, the country merged its National Bio Committee and Biohealth Innovation Committee, launching new plans to boost biotechnology innovation.

This month, Samsung Biologics unveiled a collaboration with pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly to establish a hub supporting early-stage biotech companies in the country.

Necessity drives much of this. Just 22% of South Korea’s land is farmable, highlighting the need for efficiency in farming systems through microbiome technology to improve crop protection products and AI tools ensuring predictability in turbulent supply chains.

South Korean agrifoodtech funding surges upstream

Given all of this, it’s unsurprising that agrifoodtech funding in South Korea has surged upstream. According to AgFunder’s latest Global AgriFoodTech Investment report, roughly $120 million went to startups working near the farm or lab, or on the supply chain side; $96 million went to downstream areas like restaurants and delivery.

Even more telling, AI and robotics are weaving their way into all investment categories across the country, whether on the farm or in restaurants.

About 40% of last year’s funding came from a Series C raise from GINT, specializing in autonomous driving systems for agriculture. At the time of the fundraise announcement in December, the company said it had broadened its product features to include AI-based crop management software and robotic pest control systems.

Outside of robotics, AI and deep tech appear in logistics operations (Vroong), slaughterhouse management (ROBOS), flavor creation (Joomidang), kitchen automation (Beyond Honeycomb, ControlM), and fish monitoring (Tidepool), among other areas.

Investment remains an early-stage affair

Overall agrifoodtech funding to South Korean startups grew from $97 million to $253 million in 2025, though deal count declined from 65 to 49, reflecting the conservative state of the broader agrifoodtech funding environment.

The country’s agrifoodtech investment is overwhelmingly early-stage, with 82% of the 49 deals for Seed or early-stage companies, and a median deal size of just $4.1 million.

This aligns with global trends, where the share of deals going to first-time funded companies reached 46% after years of decline.

For South Korea, the next question is whether these startups can secure necessary follow-on rounds, and whether the country’s efforts to integrate AI and deep tech will benefit the agrifoodtech ecosystem.

韩国宣布“人工智能成为必选项”，农食科技融资增长171%

South Korea says ‘AI is no longer a choice’ as agrifoodtech funding jumps 171%