South Korea defense lab launches secure AI system
· UPIJuly 6 (Asia Today) -- South Korea's state defense research agency said Monday it has launched an in-house generative artificial intelligence system designed to support defense research and administrative work while preventing the leakage of military secrets.
The Agency for Defense Development said the service, called Add+i, is now available to all employees on the agency's closed internal network.
The agency said the system was developed to overcome a major obstacle facing the defense sector: the inability to use public generative artificial intelligence services because of strict security requirements and the risk of exposing classified information.
The name Add+i was selected through an internal contest and carries the meanings "ADD intelligence" and "Advanced defense development intelligence," the agency said.
The system marks a step toward artificial intelligence transformation in South Korea's defense research and development sector, where classified networks have limited the use of outside commercial AI services.
The agency launched an artificial intelligence task force in May 2025 and decided to pursue direct development. It completed the system over three months starting in December using open artificial intelligence models. The full process, from planning and development to deployment and operation, was carried out by the agency's Defense Artificial Intelligence Technology Research Institute.
The agency said it completed beta testing and internal stabilization work through last month before expanding the service to all employees.
Add+i goes beyond basic chatbot functions, the agency said. It can search internal regulations, summarize documents and translate text. It also provides an artificial intelligence development agent tailored to the closed-network environment used in defense research.
One of its key features is support for "vibe coding," a method in which researchers work with artificial intelligence to build software from natural-language ideas and instructions.
Agency researchers will be able to use Add+i for writing program code, analyzing errors and generating test code. The agency said the system will help researchers quickly test and verify ideas while reducing repetitive work.
The agency said it has already used Add+i to develop and build a geospatial information management system that integrates spatial data held by the research institute.
The agency said natural-language search functions have helped reduce time spent on simple information retrieval and repetitive administrative work, allowing researchers to focus more on higher-value research.
The agency said the system will also serve as a foundation for introducing a sovereign artificial intelligence foundation model being promoted by the government and for expanding the defense sector's own artificial intelligence capabilities.
The agency said it is already developing Add+i 2.0, a next-generation version targeted for expansion within the year.
The upgraded system will be designed as an agent-based platform that can understand a user's goal, connect with necessary tools and systems and carry out work more independently.
The agency said Add+i 2.0 will support Model Context Protocol, a global standard for connecting artificial intelligence agents, as well as a skill-based standard connection system. The goal is to link the agency's internal systems and data with artificial intelligence agents in a more integrated way.
The long-term plan is to create a participatory artificial intelligence ecosystem in which researchers can develop functions needed for their work and connect them to Add+i 2.0 in real time.
Lee Geon-wan, president of the Agency for Defense Development, said Add+i is the agency's first major effort to help employees use generative artificial intelligence in actual work.
"Through this, we will connect the valuable data accumulated by the institute and the knowledge of our employees into an artificial intelligence ecosystem and continue expanding our research and development capabilities," Lee said.
Lee said the agency will lead artificial intelligence transformation in defense research and development based on its own capabilities and work closely with the military to strengthen practical artificial intelligence capabilities.
-- Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.
Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260706010001851