JBNU announced on the 18th that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with 35 partner companies of the Jeonbuk Defense Venture Center in the Jeonbuk region to strengthen the competitiveness of the regional defense industry and to foster the university as a regional flagship national university.

This agreement is intended to accelerate JBNU’s ongoing transition to a defense- and military-industry-specialized research university, AI-based educational innovation, and the strengthening of capabilities in future core technologies. It is expected to serve as an important turning point in advancing the regional defense industry ecosystem.

Under the agreement, JBNU and the 35 partner companies agreed to actively cooperate on collaborative research and technology development in the defense and military sectors and on establishing an Industry-University Cooperation platform.

In particular, they plan to jointly develop and operate AI convergence education and training programs based on industry needs, and to jointly pursue collaborative R&D and integrated R&D planning on future core technologies in the defense and military sectors to enhance regional innovation capabilities.

They also agreed to expand the shared use of testing and analysis equipment and research facilities to provide a foundation enabling regional companies to conduct R&D more efficiently, and to cooperate in creating a job- and startup-linked ecosystem for training specialists in the defense sector. The partner companies will participate with at least one employee annually in defense project management training to strengthen expertise and jointly lead the qualitative growth of the regional defense industry.

JBNU expects this agreement to lay the groundwork for a leap forward in the regional defense industry base. It also views the agreement as likely to have positive spillover effects on the university’s transition to a specialized research university and on development of future strategic fields.

Through collaborative research, technology cooperation, and expansion of research infrastructure, JBNU plans to actively build a regional flagship national university model that strengthens links with regional companies and contributes to regional innovation-driven growth and national balanced development.

President Yang O-bong said, "This agreement is an important starting point for JBNU to leap forward as a regional flagship national university that grows together with local industry and drives the future of national strategic industries. We will do our best to share the university's research and educational capabilities with regional companies and to build an innovative ecosystem in the defense and military sectors together to enhance Jeonbuk's future competitiveness."