David Honey, deputy undersecretary of Defense for research and engineering, has announced the United States and South Korea’s recent talks to align their technological missions.
President Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol met in recent months to outline some common goals on technological innovations such as semiconductors, batteries, civil nuclear power, achievements in space and cyberspace, the Department of Defense said Thursday.
“Fully recognizing that [the] scientists, researchers and engineers of [their] countries are among the most innovative in the world, both presidents agreed to leverage this comparative advantage to enhance public and private cooperation to protect and promote critical and emerging technologies,” Honey shared.
The DOD has outlined five focus areas for technological collaboration and shared development with South Korea, all of which directly affect global supply chain security.
Artificial intelligence is the most pressing emphasis for the two countries and they plan to direct resources toward “evidence-based AI assurance and enabling operational effectiveness.”
5G wireless technology, quantum computing, biotechnology and renewable energy sources comprise the other four main thrusts of the partnership.
In a keynote address at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Honey explained that the DOD plans to build off the progress made by 5G technology in order to make future discoveries in information technology, which the deputy undersecretary said “is vital to maintaining our economic and national security.”
Quantum computing, meanwhile, is poised to enable the DOD to work out analytical challenges through quantum sensors that could help create tools that eclipse GPS in positionality, navigation and timing.
Biotechnological research is expected to elicit new understandings of how to combat global pandemics and aid performance in tense logistics environments. This focus point in particular necessitates communal participation between nations.
Lastly, according to Honey, methodologies for creating and storing renewable energy are seen as of urgent importance for the DOD. Among these goals are developing more effective batteries, drawing from a wider array of energy sources and diminishing fuel transportation risks.
If completed, the latter targets will “decrease warfighter vulnerability and deliver new operational capabilities for the department,” Honey said.