(KPL/Yonhap) The government held a consultative meeting with private sector stakeholders Thursday to promote the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in drug development in response to the intensifying global competition in the bio-health sector.

The meeting brought together officials from the Ministry of Economy and Finance and other relevant government agencies, alongside leading pharmaceutical companies, including Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co., the ministry said in a release.

Discussions were focused on boosting AI-based drug development and promoting effective data usage, with sessions serving as a platform to listen to challenges faced by the pharmaceutical industry and to explore directions for public-private cooperation.

The global AI biotechnology market is projected to grow over 19 percent annually, reaching US$7.75 billion by 2029. South Korea currently ranks third globally in the number of AI bio-related patent applications.

"AI is rapidly permeating the entire biotechnology industry," the finance ministry said. "It is emerging as a core technology across areas, such as new drug development, protein structure prediction and design, and gene therapy."

The ministry emphasized that countries are now in fierce competition to preemptively secure AI capabilities and apply them effectively in the bio-health field.

In particular, AI-powered drug development is revolutionizing the traditional pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) process, the ministry said.

By applying AI throughout the entire drug development pipeline, time can be reduced from a period of 10 to 18 years to a period of just six to nine years while significantly cutting costs, the ministry added.

KPL