Korea, France fortify ties in biotech, eco-friendly energy, AI

Korea and France agreed Friday to fortify their partnership in three key future industries — biotechnology, decarbonization and artificial intelligence (AI) — in a joint effort to expand bilateral economic ties, the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) said. Both sides presented a road map during the Korea-France Business Dialogue, co-hosted by FKI and France’s Mouvement des Entreprises de France. The event coincided with French President Emmanuel Macron’s state visit to Korea and drew more than 300 participants from both countries, including Macron and Prime Minister Kim Min-seok. In the biotech session, executives from biotech and health care firms based in Seoul and Paris explored ways to combine Korea’s manufacturing and clinical expertise with France’s research and capital resources to enhance their global competitiveness in next-generation biotech. The panelists included Servier Korea General Manager Olivier Russo and Cho Yong-hyun, data platform division lead at Kakao Healthcare. The decarbonization session discussed collaborative hydrogen initiatives and sustainable