Feature 'AI City' Hwaseong City, 'Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' Thriving…Competing in 『MARS 2026』

The '2026 Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' AI contest hosted by Hwaseong Special City (Mayor Jung Myung-geun), South Korea's representative AI city, is drawing heated interest, recording 243 applicants in the pre-registration phase alone.

Pre-registration for 'Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' Records 243 Applicants, Enthusiasm Soaring

Hwaseong Special City, which successfully hosted the nation's first video contest utilizing AI technology among local governments in 2024 and set a new milestone in administrative promotion, unveiled the further upgraded '2026 Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' this year.

The competition categories include ▲'AI CF' capturing Hwaseong's city brand and vision, ▲'AI Short-Form' expressing daily life and memories through sensual vertical-format videos, and ▲'AI CM Song' expressing Hwaseong's appeal through catchy melodies and lyrics, totaling three fields.

In particular, this year showcases pioneering attempts to significantly expand into 'music' and 'short-form' domains, and is being evaluated as evolving one step further into a comprehensive AI content festival encompassing both visual and auditory senses. Consequently, an unprecedented venue is expected to unfold where visitors can appreciate advanced convergence-type AI content combining image, video, and voice in one place.

The '2026 Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' boasts total prize money of 60 million won, the highest level among local government contests nationwide, and anyone residing in South Korea can participate without restrictions.

In the pre-registration period held from September 14 to 20, a total of 243 applicants submitted entries, demonstrating heated creative enthusiasm before the official registration period. Following the heated enthusiasm confirmed in pre-registration, the official registration will proceed through the contest's official website (https://aihscity.com) until October 18 (Sunday).

△After the registration deadline, rigorous evaluation by expert judges will be conducted from October 19 to November 12. △The final evaluation results will be announced on November 16 through the official website, and △the awards ceremony is scheduled for November 26.

"Anyone Can Be an AI Creator" Hwaseong Special City Opens Platform for AI Creation

Most importantly, the '2026 Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' holds great significance in that a venue for popular AI creation has been established where general citizens rather than experts serve as the main participants freely expressing Hwaseong Special City's future vision.

Furthermore, by providing citizens who previously remained content consumers the opportunity to emerge as direct creative agents, the city is creating a substantial catalyst to expand the foundation of AI in the local community.

In fact, a citizen A who completed pre-registration stated, "I was always interested in AI technology, but creating content myself felt difficult, but thanks to this contest, I gained confidence and decided to take on the challenge," and expressed expectations saying, "I hope the work I created becomes official content representing Hwaseong."

Hwaseong City to Host 「MARS 2026」 at Seoul COEX from November 3 for Four Days

Building on these achievements, Hwaseong Special City will host 『MARS 2026』, South Korea's representative AI expo, at Seoul COEX (COEX) from November 3 to 5 for four days.

Notably, past award-winning works produced through the 'Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' will be prominently displayed and screened at the exhibition venue. Rather than award-winning works remaining as online-exclusive posts, they will be showcased to global audiences through booths at the event.

Meanwhile, 『MARS 2026』 is an AI expo hosted by Hwaseong Special City that gathers the essence of future key cutting-edge industries in one place, including ▲Moving City AI (future vehicles, autonomous driving, UAM), ▲AX & Physical AI (manufacturing, industrial AI transformation, and robotics), ▲Real Life AI (healthcare, smart homes), ▲Sustainable City AI (transportation, safety, urban data infrastructure), and ▲X-Space AI (aerospace, satellite data).

Building on the achievement and momentum of 『MARS 2025』 which attracted some 13,000 visitors last year, the city plans to showcase various cases and achievements of AI technology being applied to actual cities and industries at 「MARS 2026」 this year, and in particular, will actively support the global market entry and sales channel expansion of AI companies within the city to broaden the growth foundation of the region's AI industry.

The expo will operate various programs including exhibitions of cutting-edge AI technology, conferences, forums, IR pitching, investment attraction briefings, and business networking. The city plans to create an exchange venue where businesses, investors, and AI experts gather in one place to connect Hwaseong's AI industry ecosystem with the world and create new business opportunities.

Mayor Jung Myung-geun of Hwaseong: "AI Content Created by Citizens Will Be Showcased to the World at 『MARS 2026』"

Mayor Jung Myung-geun of Hwaseong Special City stated, "Hwaseong Special City, which first attempted an AI contest in South Korea in 2024 and set a new milestone in administrative promotion, has now unveiled the '2026 Byeolbyeol Hwaseong Awards' by expanding into the short-form and CM song domains this year."

Furthermore, Mayor Jung said, "The past contest content created through the combination of ideas and AI is scheduled to be widely introduced to people around the world through 『MARS 2026』, South Korea's representative AI expo, to be held at Seoul COEX from November 3 to 5," and added, "We ask for your keen interest and active participation in this contest as we together paint the city governance value of 'Shared Happiness, Greater Hwaseong.'"