Korea’s Q4 2021 tech news
• October, November & December of 2021
• Technology and startup news headlines
• Quick reference for time-poor readers
• One-click access to each article
The fourth quarter 2021 collection is drawn from
Startup News Asia’s daily updates.
October 2021 | November 2021 | December 2021
October 2021 headlines
Korea: Seoul Global Startup Center
- South Korea: An overview of the country’s metaverse developments, following the government’s launch of K-Metaverse Alliance now boasting over 200 company members
- South Korea: Qfora Alliance to launch Mellonvus, a ‘metaverse-based’ online-offline-XR shopping mall, combining Gangnam store with online experiences
- South Korea: NThing raises $21M with sustainable, modular container-based vertical farming, focusing currently on Abu Dhabi
- South Korea’s Aniai from the Born2Global Centre selected as 1 of 10 companies to participate in Q3 intake of Microsoft for Startups with AI-backed robotic kitchen tech
Korea: Seoul Fintech Lab
- South Korea: A brief intro to 10 startups that took part in 2021 StartupCON, a recent event focusing on digital content-focused innovations
- South Korea’s Riiid AI-based education tech firm acquires Langoo, Japanese distributor of its service, moving into Japan’s $2.6BN remote learning market
- South Korea: Opposition People Power Party preparing proposal for 12-month delay to implementation of crypto tax legislation in bid to soften impact
- South Korea: Sketchsoft gains $3.2M led by SoftBank Ventures Asia with software allowing artists and designers to easily work in 3D
- South Korea: Kakao Pay, country’s largest online payment service, raises massive $1.3BN in IPO
Digital Societies in Asia Pacific / GSMA
November 2021 headlines
Samsung 837X Metaverse Project
- South Korea: Google to add option for developers to offer alternative billing systems on Android app store, complying with recently-passed legislation
- South Korea: K-pop group BTS joins non-fungible tokens stampede with management company Hybe partnering parent firm of Upbit crypto trading platform
- South Korea: Mathpresso, fast-growing education-tech startup, gains Google as an investor, in part driven by QANDA AI-based learning app for K-12 students
- South Korea: ComeUp 2021 event runs November 17-19
- South Korea: Wemade blockchain gaming firm hits market capitalization of $5BN since launch of MIR4, crypto-earning massively-multiplayer online role-playing game
- South Korea: Collected coverage of the recently-completed Come Up 2021 startup festival, from Korea Tech Desk
- South Korea: A quick look at Wave Company’s ElecSuit, electro-haptic suit combining electronic muscle stimulation with virtual reality for gaming and exercise
Asia’s tech news on Instagram
- South Korea: A look at proposed ‘fake news’ legislation – a solid step towards combating the issue, or an anti-democratic effort to suppress a free press?
- South Korea: An intro to 10 K-Startup Center startups taking steps into overseas markets in Singapore program
- South Korea’s TheVentures, early-stage startup incubator and VC firm, expands with launch of TheVentures Singapore
- South Korea’s ENPlus to invest $98M in building manufacturing facilities for electric vehicles in the Philippines, seeing market opportunity in jeepney conversion
Cool Points Club / Blockchain & climate change
December 2021 headlines
Samsung 837X Metaverse Project
- South Korea: Large-scale ‘Metaverse Seoul’ initiative to launch New Year’s Eve, aiming for completion by 2026
- ICYMI: ASEAN-ROK Startup Festival on now, with Brunei’s Darussalam Enterprise bringing together entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem builders from ASEAN and Republic of Korea
- A brief look at the pitch competition winners from the recent 2021 ASEAN-Korea Startup Week
- South Korea: CellMEAT debuts world-first cultivated Dokdo shrimp prototype in step towards commercialization
- ICYMI: Naver’s Zepeto metaverse platform gains SoftBank backing of $150M with focus on digital Gucci, Dior and other high-fashion items – for 3D avatars
- Another look at South Korea’s Zepeto metaverse platform: “A lot of our users haven’t used Instagram…Facebook yet…We are the first social network that they are engaging with…”
- ICYMI: Australia and South Korea ink $1BN defense deal to build an armoured vehicles centre of excellence facility in Geelong, Victoria
- India: South Korea’s Hyundai unveils plans to invest $530M to launch 6 electric vehicle models in India by 2028
- A look at South Korea’s proposed ‘fake news’ legislation – a step towards combating the issue, or an anti-democratic effort to suppress a free press?
- Korea’s Riiid AI-based education tech firm acquires Langoo, Japanese distributor of its service, moving into Japan’s $2.6BN remote learning market
Sharp Power Research Portal / Recognizing patterns of authoritarian influence
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