Alyssa Carmina Gonzales

Inside South Korea’s Anyang Smart City Integration Center

Article (news)

ABS-CBN News

<p>The Philippines is no stranger to natural disasters; from typhoons and floods to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, yet beyond these environmental challenges, Filipinos contend daily with another set of urban problems: traffic congestion, delayed emergency responses, crime prevention operations and other basic city services.</p><p>As Philippine cities grow larger and more complex, the challenge is no longer simply responding to these crises, but managing them in real time through better coordination and technology.</p><p>Thousands of kilometers away in South Korea, the city of Anyang offers a glimpse of what that future could look like with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), through the country’s vision of an “AI universal basic society,” where everyone benefits from technological advancements.</p><p>“I believe AI enables us to address and manage social issues that we were previously unable to solve more efficiently and effectively, raising people’s awareness and bringing more convenience and improvements in public services,” said Smart Service Team Manager Yun Jungho through an interpreter in an interview with ABS-CBN News.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781073058746Screenshot (2528).png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><em></em>Smart Service Team Manager Yun Jungho during a media briefing at the Anyang Smart City Integration Center. <strong></strong><em>Dianne RJ Obdin, ABS-CBN News</em></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>For a safer and more convenient city</strong></div><p>Beyond a glass divider inside the Anyang Smart City Integration Center, a massive screen covering an area of 58.5 square kilometers stretches across an entire wall overseeing Anyang at a city-level, with five different programs running simultaneously for its population of 570,667.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781073220346Screenshot (2532).png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><p><strong><em></em></strong><em></em><em></em>Photo of Anyang Smart City Integration Center. <em>Dianne RJ Obdin, ABS-CBN News</em><em></em><strong><em></em></strong></p><div><br/></div><p>About 8,000 AI-powered cameras monitor intersections, automatically identifying vehicles, prioritizing emergency response units through smart traffic signals, and protecting children through intelligent school zone safety systems.</p><p>Information from these sensors is shared in real time with linked institutions, including fire and rescue services, police, disaster response agencies, transportation authorities, the Ministry of Justice, and even the Ministry of Defense.</p><p>While the center has been in operation for more than 20 years, Yun shared that they have only integrated AI systems into their operations around seven to eight years ago, though technological advancements have evolved more rapidly over the past two years.</p><p>“This suggests that we are entering an era in which how we utilize artificial intelligence will become even more important, to a degree that is difficult to predict,” said Yun.</p><p>Although developing and integrating these systems was initially challenging, Yun said they overcame these difficulties by focusing on the services that catered to their citizens.</p><p>“Every year, we analyzed citizens’ demands and needs, continuously improving and advancing the systems. Because of that ongoing effort, many of these systems have now become indispensable,” he said.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781073559388Screenshot (2529).png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><p>Smart Service Team Manager Yun Jungho during a media briefing at the Anyang Smart City Integration Center. <em>Dianne RJ Obdin, ABS-CBN News</em></p><div><br/></div><p>When emergencies occur, whether forest fires, typhoons, flooding, or missing person cases, the center serves as a joint situation room where agencies can coordinate a unified response.</p><p>Operators can track vehicle plate numbers, locate vulnerable individuals, dispatch emergency units, and monitor airspace activity from a single location.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781074018328Screenshot (2545).png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><p>Screenshot of Anyang Smart City Integration Center&#x27;s real-time monitoring and rapid response dissemination footage.</p><div><br/></div><p>Yun also noted that, “the key is to refine and enhance these systems in line with citizens’ expectations while keeping pace with technological progress. The most important factor is how effectively a system evolves into a service that citizens truly need and rely on.”</p><p>This system is something that the citizens of Anyang, and even those from other areas, can immerse themselves in, through the promotional experience hall of Anyang Smart City Integration Center, offering visitors a hands-on learning into future technologies featuring digital virtual reality, AI-powered smart safety roads, an autonomous driving simulator and a smart city diorama. </p><p>In 2021, Anyang became the first city in South Korea to be certified as a smart city by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>From Anyang to the world</strong></div><p>Bringing these services together on a unified platform catering to citizens from all walks of life is what sets Anyang Smart City Integration Center apart, resulting in faster decision-making, more efficient resource deployment, and a proactive approach to public safety and disaster management.</p><p>When asked if the integration center’s system can become a blueprint for countries such as the Philippines, Yun emphasized that technology alone does not guarantee success.</p><p>“You don’t have to look further [in] the Philippines,” said Yun. “Because even in (South) Korea, the same model Anyang has used cannot be successful in other regions in (South) Korea. Regardless of developing or developed countries, there’s integrated and collaborating organizations tailored to each region.”</p><p>“Local governments must continuously refine and adapt them into systems that address their own unique conditions. That responsibility, commitment and passion to tailor technology to local realities are necessary in every country,” Yun added.</p><p>In a meeting with the members of the media during the 2026 Global Media Invitation Program hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on June 1, Secretary to the President for National AI Policy Kim Woo-chang said that there’s no single AI system that can tackle the challenges that a country or humanity is facing, rather it is a combination of talent and technology.</p><p>“From a technological standpoint, we know that they can do a lot of cool things, right? But for this technology to be implemented in [the] real world, at the national level, there [has to] be a consensus of [the] general public as [to] how to use it,” he said.</p><p>Beyond Anyang, the media delegates also visited several organizations showcasing how AI is being applied across healthcare, education, workforce development, public safety and disaster response through collaboration among government, industry, academia and research institutions.</p><p>These included Seoul National University Hospital, ELICE, Inc., Capital Region 119 Special Rescue Service, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU), KOREATECH, Korea Employment Agency for Persons with Disabilities (KEAD), and Korea Job World, offering firsthand insights into the real-world use of AI to improve public services and prepare society for an increasingly digital future.</p><p>With that, Kim also expressed his openness to explore and collaborate with other nations regarding AI, citing the possibility of bilateral and multilateral discussions, with South Korea “willing to take the lead” [within those] areas.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/11/1/marcos-apec-leaders-tackle-south-korea-s-proposed-asia-pacific-ai-center-1216" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>‘AI for all’: Marcos, APEC leaders tackle South Korea’s proposed ‘Asia-Pacific AI Center’</em></strong></a></div><p>As AI continues to reshape industries and public services around the world, the challenge is no longer whether to engage with it, but in how to adapt and harness it responsibly to make its benefits more accessible to its citizens.</p><p>While conversations about AI in the Philippines are still developing, the country can explore new ways to strengthen healthcare, improve disaster response and management, and enhance public safety and services by learning from such emerging technologies and successful models overseas.</p><p>For Filipinos, the future of urban resilience may depend not on how fast technology evolves, but with the ability of governments, institutions and communities to work together toward a common goal and how well it is integrated into the everyday lives of the people it is meant to serve.</p>

<p>In 2021, Anyang became the first city in South Korea to be certified as a smart city by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.</p>

In 2021, Anyang became the first city in South Korea to be certified as a smart city by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.