The Ministry of Science and ICT said it held the 2026 Tech Developers' Day ceremony at the Fairmont Ambassador Seoul on the 7th. Designated a statutory national commemorative day for the first time this year, the event honored the work of 450,000 technology developers nationwide and pledged a national leap forward centered on science and technology.
Attendees included Prime Minister Han Seong-sook, Song Ki-heon, chairman of the National Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, lawmaker Choi Hyung-doo, Koo Hyuk-chae, first vice minister of science and ICT, and Koo Ja-kyun, chairman of the Korea Industrial Technology Association, along with other leading figures from industry, academia and research. The ceremony presented 55 government awards and 35 deputy prime minister's commendations for contributions to private-sector research and development and technology management, as well as 11 Outstanding Researcher Awards given by the chairman of the Korea Industrial Technology Association.
Lee Jin-yeop, executive vice president at Samsung Electronics (005930), received the Science and Technology Innovation Medal, the second-highest grade. He was recognized for contributions to Samsung's leadership in the memory market and its product competitiveness, including the world's first mass production of 1Gb NAND flash memory and the development of vertically stacked NAND flash memory. The Science and Technology Achievement Medal, the third-highest grade, went to Song Keun-seok, executive vice president at HK inno.N, and Chang Ji-eun, executive vice president at SK hynix (000660).
Recipients of the Science and Technology Merit Award were Ko Ki-ok, head of the flight control law team at Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), Ryu Jin-ho, research fellow at POSCO, Park Woo-jin, head of the global product development research center at LS Electric, and Lee Ho-ki, head of the eco-friendly research center at Samsung Heavy Industries (010140).
