South Korea’s technology news headlines across the first quarter on 2024 covered a varied range of items and applications, achievements and concerns. These included, for example:
LG’s moves into artificial intelligence-driven robotics, a move towards software; Korean cloud-based quantum services in partnership with the European Union; Rebellions AI-focused semiconductor chips firm’s many growth moves; the government’s move to identify and develop over 1000 deep-tech firms in 5 years; and many more.
In March 2024 | In February 2024 | In January 2024
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South Korea: National Cybersecurity Strategy
South Korean Tech: March 2024
- South Korea: An intro to InHandPlus Inc’s Doctor on Wrist smartwatch, integrating AI tech powered by ChatGPT to personalize recording and management of medication, dietary information, lifestyle data and more / read it here
- “North Korean hackers breached at least two South Korean microchip equipment companies in recent months, stealing product design drawings and facility site photos…” / read it here
- South Korea: Jeju Island proposes use of NFTs and blockchain tech to spark growth in tourism, agriculture, livestock and fisheries sectors / read it here
- South Korea: China’s PonyAI driverless vehicles firm inks JV with Korea’s GemVaxLink to deploy a fleet of autonomous vehicles in Seoul, initially for ride-hailing services / read it here
- A brief video intro to Dilly, last-mile, door-to-door delivery robot recently approved for sidewalks
- South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have ceased sales of used chip fabrication equipment to Chinese entities, in adherence with US export curbs / read it here
- South Korea’s LG Electronics invests $60M in Bear Robotics, US firm specializing in AI-driven autonomous service robots, part of a transition for the company towards software-defined robots / read it here
- Samsung is set to receive $6BN from the US gov’t with plans for a second chip manufacturing facility in the US, adding to chip project already underway in Texas / read it here
- South Korea: Rebellions AI chip firm preps for mass production of energy-efficient ATOM chips with Samsung as manufacturing partner for 5nm tech in H1 2024 and 4nm in H2 / read it here
- South Korea: A brief overview of the recent ‘K-Startup and OpenAI Matching Day’ that took place in Silicon Valley, with 10 Korean startups set to gain from OpenAI support / read it here
- South Korea: More on Rebellions AI chip-maker, partnered with Samsung and Korea Telecom and aiming to be ‘Korea’s NVIDIA’ for specialized processor chips / read it here
- South Korean Gov’t joins Extreme Tech Challenge and UN Development Programme for ‘Peace, Justice & Inclusive Society Startup Competition’, to align tech innovation with Sustainable Development Goals / read it here
- South Korea’s cloud firm, MegazoneCloud, lands solutions role with Europe’s Terra Quantum, looking to develop quantum and deeptech applications for Asia and South Korea / read it here
- European Union and Republic of Korea to collaborate on research and innovation in semiconductors, with projects set for selection in June for commencement by year-end / read it here
- South Korea’s DCamp startup ecosystem builder and Uzbekistan’s IT Park discuss collaboration, investment opportunities and more / read it here
- South Korea: Hyundai Motor Group to invest $51BN in EVs to year-end 2026, hiring 80K employees and boosting R&D on software-defined vehicles and battery technologies / read it here
- India: Samsung Semiconductor India Research unveils R&D facility in Bengaluru / read it here
- AsterX 2024 Military Space Exercise took place in France, with Japan and South Korea taking part for first time, likely heralding future presence in European, NATO and US bids to boost cyber defense / read it here
- National Incubation Center of Cambodia launches, sited in Royal University of Phnom Penh, to build tech skills in the Kingdom’s youth, with key startup relationship in place with South Korea / read it here
- South Korea’s GLN expands QR payments to the Philippines in partnership with Asia United Bank, enabling the QRPh cross-border payment service for visitors to the Philippines / read it here
- ‘Honda and Nissan have put aside the “traditional approach” of fierce rivalry to join forces and work together on electric vehicle technology as Japan’s carmakers try to catch up with Chinese competitors.’ / read it here
- Vietnam: South Korea’s smart farm firm, Avalve, inks MOUs to bring AI-optimized agriculture to Vietnam / read it here
- Mobile network speeds: “Asia Pacific markets saw an improvement of 5.2Mbps on average — India, Malaysia and South Korea saw the highest speed increases… of 36.1Mbps, 17.9Mbps and 14.8Mbps, respectively.” / read it here
NBR: Bolstering and Securing Semiconductor Supply Chains
South korea tech: February 2024
- South Korea: Rebellions Inc raised $124M to ramp up development of next-generation, AI-focused semiconductor chips
- South Korea: Ministry of SMEs & Startups moves to bolster venture investment landscape uncertainty with allocation of $684M into investment projects for fiscal year’s first quarter
- South Korea: Rebellions AI-focused semiconductor firm raised $124M Series B, with next-gen chips targeting a price half that of NVIDIA equivalents
- South Korea: Seoul Metro Gov’t partners Google Startup Campus for AI Startup School program for young people, targeting an overall intake of 6000 for education
- KT – Korea Telecom – and partners to build out fiber-optic cable network connecting Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam
- “With delivery robots now allowed to use sidewalks in South Korea, companies are racing toresolve issues related to the last mile of delivery to bring goods to the customer’s door.”
- “Dilly Drive uses cameras, radar and GPS to travel at 5 or 6 kilometers per hour while avoiding pedestrians. It can cross crosswalks by recognizing whether the signal is green or red. The robot can communicate with the building’s management system, allowing it to ride elevators and bring food and drinks to the customer’s apartment.”
- South Korea: Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs launches $149M Agri-Food Venture Fund, focusing on companies leveraging technology to enhance agricultural productivity
- South Korea: Ministry of SMEs & Startups launches Super Gap Startup Promotion Project plan to identify over 1000 deep-tech startups across 5 years, focusing on emerging techs including semiconductors and AI
- South Korea: TelePix unveils NVIDIA-based AI processor geared for satellites, running 10 trillion operations per second to analyze large datasets in space in real-time
- South Korea: Indonesia’s East Ventures VC introduces first managing partner for $100M East Ventures South Korea fund, formed in partnership with SV Investment
- Download: South Korea National Security Strategy, featuring a focus on boosting preemptive and offensive capabilities to counter North Korea’s increasing cyber threats (pdf)
- Samsung wins its first 2nm AI chip order from Japan’s Preferred Networks Inc in switch from PFN’s past TSMC supply of advanced chips
- South Korea’s MediThinQ launches world-first XR-enabled wearable surgical displays, placing critical information directly in from of a surgeon’s eyes
- “MediThinQ’s XR solutions present critical information directly in from of the surgeon’s eyes, eliminating the need to divert attention to screens. The first of its kind in revolutionising how medical information is accessed in live surgeries, they are backed by best-in-class image fidelity, latency, reliability, and equipment compatibility.”
- South Korea: Hyundai Motor Group opens 2024 recruitment for ZER01NE Accelerator program, seeking solutions focusing on software defined vehicles, ‘smart factory’ developments, ESG and artificial intelligence
- South Korea: Dolbomdream gains Quest Ventures backing with IoT-backed ‘hugging vests’, offering psychological comfort by simulating the effect of hugs on wearers
- South Korea’s largest telco, SK Telecom, partners US AI startup Perplexity for artificial intelligence-driven search engine as an alternative to offerings from Google and Naver
- NK Insider: News, informed analysis, and op-eds curated and presented by North Koreans themselves
- North Korea’s first spy satellite, Malligyong-1, is believed now to be live following orbit changes detected that suggest Pyongyang has control of the craft
- Seoul National University Center for Quantum Information Science Education and US quantum tech firm, IonQ, ink agreement around developing a quantum workforce
- South Korea: DeepX nears $90M funding with specialized AI-focused semiconductors, working with Hyundai Kia Motors Robotics Lab and others to enter mass production
- ICYMI: OpenAI terminates accounts believed to be operated by nation-state cyber-threat actors linked to China, Russia, Iran and North Korea
- Intel, Japan’s NTT and South Korea’s SK Hynix partner on next-gen photonics chips, allowing communication using light instead of using electrons, with sights on semiconductor integration
2024 Cisco Cybersecurity Readiness – Underprepared & overconfident firms
Korea tech news: January 2024
- South Korea: Orbit Chain platform suffers cyber-attack, losing $81M in cryptocurrency, with Police Agency and Korea Internet & Security Agency investigating
- South Korea: Ministry of SMEs & Startups unveils $2.8BN budget for ‘2024 Central and Local Government Entrepreneurship Support Project’, backing 397 startup support projects from 99 organizations
- South Korea: WeMade gaming giant hit with $41M tax bill over crypto-related activities following National Tax Service investigation
- South Korea: SparkLabs early-stage startup accelerator selects 4 firms for 22nd edition, working on AI-boosted manufacturing, carbon emissions, financial analysis and project management
- South Korea: An overview of the more-than-550 tech firms and startups exhibiting at the CES 2024 event in Las Vegas, working in fields including batteries, semiconductors, AR and more
- South Korea’s Coupang revives LG Rocket Delivery distribution partnership, with shared concerns over growing impacts of China’s direct-purchase services seen as underpinnings
- South Korea: Daejeon City administrator accounts hacked, with systems then infected with cryptocurrency mining software
- South Korea: Gov’t unveils $471BN private sector investment blueprint for 13 new chip plants and 3 R&D facilities, adding to 21 existing facilities, targeting 7.7M wafers monthly by 2030
- More on South Korea’s proposed semiconductor mega-cluster development, set to cover 21M square meters whilst creating 3.46 million jobs
- South Korean food giant Namyang Dairy Products partners US firm, Pureture, to create products based on Pureture’s GMO-free, yeast-based casein, in advance of $12M seed funding round
- South Korea: Aniai raises $12M pre-A with kitchen robotics, with product set led by domestic and US adoption of Alpha Grill hamburger cooking robot
- South Korea: Elice gains $15M backing with AI-driven education platform focusing on institutional clients and technical knowledge
- South Korea: Customs busts 3-year chip smuggling operation focused on China market, impounding 53,000 dual-use chips worth $11.6M
- North Korean hackers found using new Apple macOS backdoor, SpectralBlur, which interacts with other DPRK hacker malware packages
- North Korean hacker group, ScarCruft, found testing new methods including technical threat research report decoys featuring malware, aimed at cybersecurity info consumers and professionals
- Samsung debuts Galaxy S24 series in China, ditching Google AI features in favor of ‘exclusive cooperation’ with Baidu to use Ernie artificial intelligence chatbot
- South Korea’s Pocket PangPang enters Thailand with single-price mobile shopping platform, matching customers with one product for a flat fee
- Vietnam’s VinCSS partnered South Korea’s Autocrypt auto cybersecurity firm at CES 2024, looking to better protect smart vehicles from cyber threats
- University of Tokyo, Seoul Nat’l University and University of Chicago have entered into a trilateral technology partnership to train a quantum-focused workforce and strengthen collective competitiveness
- A brief overview of Indo-Pacific space-technology developments, and rising concerns, from Nikkei Asia
Jamestown Foundation: Examining China’s Grand Strategy For RISC-V
Asian tech news: Other platforms
- Daily – LinkedIn / Twitter/X / Facebook
- Newsletters – weekly on LinkedIn / Substack
- Monthly collections – countries across AsiaPac / IndoPac
- Asia tech, quarterly – 3 months’ coverage per country
- Critical technologies – global news, monthly & quarterly
