South Korea's industry ministry said Sunday it has approved 53 projects with a budget of 85 billion won ($75 million) this year in line with efforts to develop fully automated cars by 2027.

Around 373 organizations and 3,500 experts are expected to join the research projects, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

South Korea said the budget will be spent on developing automotive parts for self-driving cars, along with artificial intelligence software.

The announcement came in line with South Korea's plan announced earlier to spend 1.09 trillion won through 2027 for such projects.

Under the vision, the country plans to achieve the so-called Level 4 automation by 2027, in which drivers are no longer required to grab steering wheels.

It compares to the Level 2 technology currently available in the market, in which drivers need to stay focused at all times, while cars are only able to follow traffic lanes. Only limited interventions are needed under Level 3.

The country will also make efforts to revise existing traffic rules to accommodate self-driving cars. (Yonhap)