National Science Museum Concludes AI Hack Camp 2026…12 Teams Honored

A commemorative photo was taken with the winners at the AI Hack Camp 2026 awards and closing ceremony. [Provided by the National Science Museum]

[Herald Economy = Reporter Koo Bon-hyuk] The National Science Museum announced that it held AI Hack Camp 2026 at the Future Technology Hall over two days and one night from May 16 to 17 under the theme of “developing AI innovation solutions that change people’s lives.”

A total of 410 teams applied for this year’s competition, recording a high competition ratio of 34.2 to 1 and demonstrating public expectations and strong interest in AI technology.

Participants selected one of four designated themes: digital health (improving national mental health and fostering DTx), digital safety (securing generative AI safety and detecting deepfakes), digital inclusion (making AI part of everyday life for all citizens and closing gaps), and digital education (linking AI education and providing customized explanations of scientific principles). They planned ideas and built prototypes to solve problems.

As a result of the judging committee’s evaluation, three teams from each field, 12 teams in total, were selected as finalists. Expert evaluation (70%) deeply assessed suitability, safety, creativity, feasibility, and scalability, and the final rankings were confirmed by combining those scores with public voting results (30%).

The DevFive team, which won the Grand Prize (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Award), developed a conversational AI companion service that helps older adults and people with disabilities easily complete complex public HWP documents using only voice, photos, and handwriting on a board. It was evaluated as having removed practical barriers to administrative participation by expanding digital administrative accessibility from “reading” to “writing.”

The CSI team, which won the Excellence Prize, developed a system that monitors a patient’s condition in real time using Wi-Fi signals (CSI) and on-device AI without cameras or body-worn sensors. The system is expected to help reduce the burden on medical staff by detecting emergencies more precisely.

Kwon Seok-min, director of the National Science Museum, said, “This competition is meaningful because it is not simply a venue for technology competition, but because citizens directly participate as ‘coexistence designers’ in the AI era, beyond being consumers of policy, to envision the future together.” He added, “I hope the solutions derived from this competition will become practical catalysts that fill blind spots in our society and improve quality of life.”