Korea's Manufacturing Expo Gets a Major Rebrand — and AI Is at the Center of It

From Machine Tools to AI: A 50-Year-Old Expo Reinvents Itself

So here's something worth paying attention to if you follow Korean industry news: one of Korea's oldest and most established manufacturing trade shows is getting a significant makeover — and the timing could not be more relevant.

KOMAF, the Korea Machinery Fair, has been a fixture of Korea's industrial calendar for half a century. It has tracked the country's rise as a manufacturing powerhouse, showcasing everything from heavy machine tools to precision components. But starting this October, it is stepping into a new era under a new name: AMXPO 2026, short for the Asia Machinery and Manufacturing Expo.

The organizer, Coamimesse (CEO Ryu Tae-seong), announced that the revamped event will run from October 21 to 23 at KINTEX — the Korea International Exhibition Center — in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, just outside Seoul. KINTEX is one of the largest convention and exhibition spaces in Asia, so this is not a small-scale affair.

Why the Rebrand, and Why Now?

What's really interesting is the timing of this shift. The global manufacturing sector is going through one of the most disruptive periods in its history. Artificial intelligence, autonomous production systems, robotics, and digital transformation are no longer futuristic concepts — they are actively reshaping factory floors right now. The organizers clearly felt that the KOMAF brand, while respected, no longer captured the full scope of what modern manufacturing looks like.

AMXPO 2026 is designed to bridge that gap. The expo will cover the traditional foundations of the industry — metalworking, smart factories, materials and components, and clean energy technology — but it will also put a heavy emphasis on cutting-edge areas like AI-driven manufacturing, autonomous production, Physical AI, robotics, and digital transformation, often referred to in Korean industry circles as DX.

Think of it as an expo that wants to show you not just where Korean manufacturing has been, but where it is unambiguously headed.

Who's Showing Up?

The participation lineup is already generating buzz. Doosan Enerbility, one of Korea's biggest heavy industry conglomerates, will be front and center. The company plans to showcase its work across large-scale nuclear power plants, small modular reactors (SMRs), gas turbines, and offshore wind energy — all framed around their AI-enhanced manufacturing capabilities. Given the global surge in electricity demand driven by data centers and the AI infrastructure boom, Doosan's focus on stable power generation solutions feels especially timely.

Robotics and automation firms Jukang Robotech and SOCO KOREA are also confirmed participants, and they will be presenting solutions aimed at boosting productivity and operational efficiency on the factory floor.

There will also be a dedicated metalworking pavilion featuring regional small manufacturer support centers from areas including Siheung, Daejeon, and Gangwon Province. These cluster pavilions are designed to spotlight companies in foundational industries — think automotive parts, shipbuilding components, electronics, and even aerospace — giving smaller but highly skilled manufacturers a platform to connect with buyers and expand into new markets.

The AI Connection: K Connect AI and Industry AI EXPO

Here's where things get even more ambitious. AMXPO 2026 is not just a standalone expo — it is being integrated into a much larger initiative called K Connect AI, a government-backed platform organized by Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The platform's slogan, "Now is the M.AX," signals a pivot toward what the industry is calling AI Transformation, or AX — a step beyond the digital transformation wave of the last decade.

K Connect AI connects five major Korean industrial exhibitions under one umbrella: the Korea Electronics Show, the Korea Semiconductor Expo, the Industry AI EXPO, AMXPO, and Roboworld. These events will roll out across COEX in Seoul and KINTEX in Goyang from October 13 through November 7, creating what is essentially a month-long festival of Korean industrial and technological innovation.

Specifically, AMXPO will be co-hosted simultaneously with the Industry AI EXPO, organized by the Korea Association of Industry Intelligence. That co-location is deliberate — it creates a direct bridge between traditional manufacturers looking to adopt AI and the AI technology companies offering those solutions. The goal is to move beyond information exchange and actually generate real business deals.

Beyond the Exhibition Floor

The organizers are clearly thinking about impact beyond just foot traffic. Several business-focused programs will run alongside the main exhibition.

• The Insight Connect 2026 x AMXPO Conference will bring together industry leaders and experts to discuss the real-world application of AI in manufacturing — not theoretical talk, but actual case studies and execution strategies.
• A Technology Seminar will spotlight new products and emerging machinery technologies.
• An international Hosted Buyer B2B Matchmaking session will connect participating Korean companies with overseas buyers.
• A UNIDO advisory consultation will offer guidance to companies looking to expand into global markets — UNIDO being the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.

The message is clear: AMXPO wants to be a place where deals get made, not just demos get watched.

A Milestone Moment for Korean Manufacturing

CEO Ryu Tae-seong framed the rebrand as both a tribute to the past and a commitment to the future. "AMXPO carries forward the expertise that KOMAF has built alongside Korea's machinery industry over 50 years," he said, "while also embracing the new changes in manufacturing — AI, robotics, autonomous production." He added that the simultaneous hosting with the Industry AI EXPO and the K Connect AI linkage would help create "a genuine industrial platform where manufacturers and AI companies can go beyond technology exchange and achieve real business results."

For global observers, this is worth watching. Korea has long been a manufacturing heavyweight, and the fact that its flagship machinery expo is now centering AI and autonomous manufacturing so prominently is a signal of where the country's industrial strategy is going. If you are in the manufacturing, robotics, energy, or AI space and looking at the Asian market, AMXPO 2026 in October might just be the event to have on your radar.

This article is based on reports from Hdhy, Dong-A Ilbo, Amenews.