L&F is accelerating its regional linkage strategy, which encompasses strengthening Daegu's industrial competitiveness, fostering talent, and making new investments, by expanding AI Transformation (AX) collaborations with research institutions and partner companies. The plan is to establish a foundation for technological transformation through joint industry-academia research and link this to increased local employment and the expansion of production bases.

This collaboration was pursued in conjunction with the signing ceremony of the MOU between the four major science and technology institutes and regional AX partner companies held at KAIST on March 23. This is a follow-up measure to the 'AX Strategy for the Four Major Science and Technology Institutes' announced at the 5th Ministerial Meeting on Science and Technology Relations on March 11, focusing on each institute and company jointly promoting AI transformation tasks for regional industries.

The core of the agreement is to solve challenges in the industrial field by combining the AI capabilities of universities and research institutions with the data and demonstration environments of companies. The 'AX Joint Research Institute,' in which L&F participates, is an open collaboration model of this nature, structured to simultaneously promote joint research and field application based on local industrial demand.

Prior to this, on January 15, L&F also signed a separate business agreement with DGIST to promote AX in the robot and mobility industries, and has been concretizing plans for operating a joint research organization, technology convergence, reliability verification, and linking field demonstration with commercialization. The company explained that it aims to secure AX technology applicable in future industrial fields such as robotics, semiconductors, and healthcare by combining DGIST's research personnel and infrastructure with L&F's industrial data and field experience.

L&F is also simultaneously working to secure local talent. The company stated that a high proportion of its total employees are from the Daegu region, and that it has maintained a local talent recruitment rate of over 80% for the past several years. It is also continuing recruitment information sessions, job mentoring, and internship programs in collaboration with local universities such as Kyungpook National University, Yeungnam University, and Keimyung University.

Investment is also following suit. L&F is pursuing the construction of a factory for its subsidiary 'L&F Plus,' dedicated to LFP cathode materials, in the Daegu National Industrial Complex. The company plans to invest a total of 338.2 billion won to establish a production system with an annual capacity of up to 60,000 tons. The target completion date is the first half of 2026, with mass production targeted for the second half of the same year. Attention is focused on whether L&F’s strategy to connect technological cooperation, employment, and the expansion of production bases within a single region will lead to actual regional industrial growth.