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Representatives of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Enegry attends a virtual board meeting of Korea-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation with Israeli counterpart at InterContinental Seoul Monday. (Yonhap) |
South Korea and Israel said Monday they plan to speed up joint research and development projects to cope with the changing business environment amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The announcement came after the two countries announced earlier this year that they will increase contributions to the Korea-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation. The foundation kicked off in 2001 to promote bilateral technology exchanges.
In May, South Korea and Israel vowed to each disburse $4 million annually for the foundation, which is double the previous annual budget of $2 million. On the back of such efforts, the foundation on Monday decided to fund two new projects, namely the development of AI-based ultrasound self-diagnostic devices and a new type of medical treatment based on genes.
The foundation also vowed to raise the ceiling on the amount of grant provided for a single project to $1.5 million from the previous $1 million.
South Korea and Israel decided to provide up to $3 million for projects that are deemed strategically crucial, the foundation added. (Yonhap)
