Hyundai Elevator marks 40 years with vision for future innovation

South Korea's largest elevator manufacturer Hyundai Elevator celebrated its 40th anniversary on Wednesday, pledging to solidify its path toward becoming a centennial company with a vision centered on ESG management practices and urban air mobility. "Hyundai Elevator has grown into a cornerstone of the Korean industry through relentless challenges and innovations since honorary chairman Chung Ju-young planted the seeds 40 years ago," Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun was quot

IndustryMay 22, 2024

Global leaders vow to promote safe, inclusive AI at Seoul summit

Leaders of major global powers Tuesday adopted a declaration pledging to promote safe, innovative and inclusive artificial intelligence amid the fast-evolving tech environment. The “Seoul Declaration” was adopted during a virtual leaders' session of the AI Seoul Summit, co-hosted by President Yoon Suk Yeol and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The declaration aims to address the broad spectrum of opportunities and challenges posed by the design, development, deployment and use

TechnologyMay 22, 2024

Battery makers' output slows on waning EV demand

An increasing share of manufacturing capacity is not being used in Korea’s battery industry due to waning demand in the electric vehicle market. But manufacturers remain optimistic about a recovery later this year as inventory adjustments end and new EV models are launched. Official data released this week reveal that LG Energy Solution’s factory capacity utilization rate fell to 57.4 percent in the first quarter, a steep decline from 77.7 percent during the same period last year. Si

MobilityMay 22, 2024

Dongsuh Foods' Kanu Barista woos coffee lovers

As the domestic capsule coffee reaches an annual market size of 400 billion won ($293 million), South Korean food and beverage manufacturer Dongsuh Foods aims to attract more consumers through its brand, Kanu Barista. Launched in February last year, Kanu Barista is a premium capsule coffee brand that contains 9.5 grams of coffee beans, which is 1.7 times more than conventional espresso capsules, delivering a richer flavor. The brand offers a diverse selection of 11 capsule types, including light

IndustryMay 22, 2024

[Photo News] Hyundai's startup showcase in Paris

Hyundai Motor Group's startup incubator ZER01NE is participating in the 2024 Viva Technology exhibition at the Paris Expo de Versailles through May 25. ZER01NE's booth, themed "Seamless Post Human City," features a stark monochromatic palette accented by exhibits from startup partners such as Mobinn, an autonomous delivery solutions provider; Biomyc, a creator of sustainable materials from mycelium; and Jedlix, an electricity trading platform. Architecting the exhibit is IVAA

MobilityMay 22, 2024

[Herald Interview] 'Lifting regulations key to corporate push for RE100'

Regulations are holding back companies like Samsung Electronics in speeding up their renewable energy commitments, so the government should remove them and pursue grid transformation, the head of Climate Group said Tuesday. Noting how Korea had a lot of regulatory limitations on implementing renewable energy plants, Helen Clarkson, the chief executive officer of the London-based entity, highlighted the role of the government and that its initial moves are the key for the country to "get on

IndustryMay 22, 2024

[Photo News] Show of appreciation

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo (fourth from right) pose for a photo with company employees and their parents at a concert held at Olympic Park in Seoul on Tuesday. The group arranged a music concert, inviting employees who have shown outstanding performance in their work and their parents. (Hana Financial Group)

IndustryMay 22, 2024

14 global tech giants adopt business pledge on 'responsible' development of AI

A group of South Korean and global tech companies adopted a joint pledge Wednesday, vowing to responsibly develop and use artificial intelligence and to address social challenges with the technology. The Seoul AI Business Pledge was announced by 14 companies, including Korea's Samsung Electronics Co., Naver Corp., Kakao Corp. and KT Corp., as well as global big tech companies, such as Google, Microsoft, OpenAI and IBM, during the opening ceremony of the AI Global Forum in Seoul. The AI Glob

TechnologyMay 22, 2024

Seoul shares open lower on tech, insurance losses

South Korean stocks opened lower on Wednesday, mainly due to losses from technology and insurance shares. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 13.59 points, or 0.5 percent, to 2,710.59 in the first 15 minutes of trading. Top tech giant Samsung Electronics slid 1.28 percent, and LG Electronics shed 0.62 percent to 95,900 won. Insurance firms were among major losers as well, with Samsung Life Insurance falling 2.94 percent and Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance decreasing 3.48 per

MarketMay 22, 2024

Dabeeo launches palm oil farm AI monitoring project in Indonesia, covering area larger than Seoul

Leading geospatial intelligence AI technology firm Dabeeo on Monday commenced its latest AI monitoring project of palm oil farms in Indonesia, covering an area that is larger than the South Korean capital of Seoul. The company inked a deal with Tunas Sawa Erma Group, one of Indonesia's major palm oil producers, for the project, spanning across a total of 765 square kilometers. "While high-precision satellite imagery is commonly used for military and IT purposes, cases like this one,

TechnologyMay 22, 2024

Digital Marketing Summit 2024 explores marketing roles in heightened AI era

Artificial intelligence’s impact on the marketing sector will become much greater in the following years, said experts who joined the Digital Marketing Summit 2024. The Digital Marketing Summit is an annual digital marketing conference that invites marketers and experts to share the latest tactics, trends technologies and insights from the industry. The latest summit runs between Tuesday and Wednesday at Coex in Seoul. “AI is going to have such a big impact on us. Technology today is

IndustryMay 22, 2024

KakaoTalk messenger suffers service disruption for 2nd day

Kakao Corp., the operator of South Korea's dominant mobile messenger app, said Tuesday its service experienced a disruption for about an hour in the morning due to an error in its internal system. KakaoTalk's personal computer version was down from 8:30 a.m. to 9:24 a.m., the company said, noting it immediately responded to the issue. The messenger also experienced brief service outages Monday and last week. In 2022, KakaoTalk suffered a widespread outage due to a fire at a data center

CompaniesMay 21, 2024

[KH Explains] Hong Kong rally spurs hope for ELS loss mitigation

Hong Kong stocks surged to a 10-month high Monday, continuing a bullish rally and sparking hopes of South Korea's recovery from significant losses tied to equity-linked securities tracking the Chinese index. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, tracking major Chinese stocks on Hong Kong's main bourse, reached an annual high of 6,954 on Monday, setting daily records. The following day, it opened slightly lower at around 6,909, but this was still 38 percent up from January's annua

IndustryMay 21, 2024

FSS briefs Hong Kong bankers on new short selling system

The Financial Supervisory Service officials visited Hong Kong to seek cooperation with financial authorities and investment banks there for the regulator’s efforts to stamp out illegal short selling. During his two-day visit from Thursday, a delegation led by FSS Senior Deputy Gov. Hahm Yong-il met executives in charge of the Asia-Pacific region at seven global investment banks to inform them about the Korean government’s plan to set up a monitoring system designed to detect illega

MarketMay 21, 2024

BAT Rothmans launches premium glo Hyper pro

BAT Rothmans' flagship heated tobacco brand "glo" announced Tuesday the launch of its new premium device, Hyper pro, with pre-orders available on Coupang. The brand-new model features a new EasyView screen and the latest HeatBoost technology. The EasyView screen, a high-definition AMOLED display, reflects consumer feedback from previous models. It offers six screen modes, allowing users to easily check remaining usage time, heating time, battery level and more with just a single c

CompaniesMay 21, 2024

Seoul shares end lower ahead of Fed minutes release

South Korean stocks ended lower Tuesday ahead of a release of the minutes of the US Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting. The local currency fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index shed 17.96 points, or 0.65 percent, to close at 2,724.18. Trade volume was moderate at 547.5 million shares worth 10.02 trillion won ($7.3 billion), with losers beating winners 585 to 290. Individual investors purchased a net 501.7 billion won worth of local shares,

MarketMay 21, 2024

[Herald Interview] Korea inspires other donors for development funding: World Bank vice president

Akihiko Nishio, the World Bank’s vice president for development finance, said Korea becoming the host country for the International Development Association's 21st replenishment meeting could uplift the spirit of contribution to the global solidarity fund. The International Development Association, a development finance institution under the multilateral lender World Bank Group, seeks to help the world’s poorest countries improve by providing loans and grants. On Monday, the Wo

EconomyMay 21, 2024

K-water boasts 'super-gap' technoloiges at World Water Forum

Korea Water Resources Corp., or K-water, said Tuesday that it presented three "super gap" technologies the agency has developed to tackle water issues at the 10th World Water Forum in Bali, Indonesia. The technologies include digital twin technology for water management, AI-based water purification plants, and a smart water network management system. Recognized for their potential to tackle the unpredictable and unprecedented climate crisis, they were featured in a special session at

TechnologyMay 21, 2024

Samsung replaces semiconductor chief amid heightened AI race

Samsung Electronics said Tuesday it has appointed Jun Young-hyun as the new head of its semiconductor business in an apparent move to strengthen its market position amid fiercer competition in burgeoning artificial intelligence chips. Kyung Kye-hyun, who previously held the position, has been tapped to lead the company's future business planning team. The announcement comes as Samsung struggles to compete with rivals in advanced chips such as SK hynix, the market leader in producing high ba

IndustryMay 21, 2024

[Photo News] New brand identity for Bibigo

CJ CheilJedang has unveiled a new brand identity for Bibigo, the company’s Korean food brand, aimed at targeting global consumers, the food giant said Tuesday. The new BI resembles a Korean dining table, symbolizing human connection through culinary sharing. (CJ CheilJedang)

CompaniesMay 21, 2024