India and South Korea are expanding their bilateral partnership well beyond trade, with major South Korean firms anchoring industrial investments across India's south — from Hyundai's ₹45,000-crore electric vehicle commitment in Tamil Nadu to HD Hyundai's proposed $4-billion shipyard in Thoothukudi (a port city on India's southeastern tip). Samsung operates its largest R&D institute outside South Korea in Bengaluru, while a dedicated "Korea Enclave" in Sri City, Andhra Pradesh, is being developed to attract South Korean manufacturers seeking alternatives to China-based supply chains. The relationship is also acquiring a strategic dimension, with the two countries' navies conducting joint exercises for the first time in late 2025, a bilateral cybersecurity pact signed in May 2026, and a jointly produced howitzer manufactured in Gujarat — signalling that what was once primarily a trade partnership is becoming a broader industrial and security alliance.