Maker of ‘da Vinci’ surgical robot to open center in Seoul

Intuitive Surgical, the world’s top surgical robot maker best known for its “da Vinci” robotic surgical system, will open a new surgical innovation and training center at the Sangam Digital Media City cluster in northeastern Seoul.The news was announced Monday by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, which has designated the upcoming center as the city’s first-ever service-type foreign investment institution. A robot-assisted surgical system at a local hospital (Yonhap)Seoul City and Intuitive Surg

April 10, 2017

LG Electronics tops global market for 21:9 monitors

South Korea's No. 2 tech giant LG Electronics Inc. said Monday it remained the No. 1 player in the global market for monitors with an aspect ratio of 21:9 last year.Citing the data compiled by industry tracker IDC, the company said its global market share among panel manufacturers was estimated at 67 percent in 2016. It marks the fourth-consecutive year for the South Korean company to lead the sector.Models pose with the LG UltraWide Monitor in this photo released by LG Electronics Inc. on April

April 10, 2017

Galaxy S8 to come with Korean-made document-editing app

Hancom Inc., a South Korean software maker, said Monday that Samsung Electronics Co.'s latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S8, will come with its office application that's compatible with Microsoft Office files.The South Korean developer said the application will be on the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8 Plus that will be sold in the United States.Samsung Electronics Co.'s Galaxy S8 is displayed at a shop in Seoul on April 9, 2017. (Yonhap)The app, Hancom Office S, allows users to edit not only P

April 10, 2017

[Health-tech Korea] 3billion aims to offer affordable DNA screening service for rare disease patients

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles highlighting South Korea’s promising startups in the emerging sectors of digital health care and next-generation medical devices. This is the seventh installment. – Ed.　　At age 4, an American toddler named Nicholas Volker was dying. 　Since he was born, the boy had suffered from an unknown disease that caused holes to continually form in his abdomen. Yet, no treatment, whether it be chemotherapy, antibiotics or new forms of medicine, seemed to b

April 9, 2017

SK’s ICT exports surges after hynix buyout

A landmark acquisition of a local chipmaker by SK Group five years ago has accelerated the growth of the group’s information and communications technology businesses, pushing their outbound shipments to surge 127-fold, the group said Sunday. “The ICT affiliates’ boost in sales has played a critical role in turning the group into an export machine,” SK Group wrote in a statement Sunday. “Adding to the conventional powerhouses devoted to energy and chemical products, the ICT firms under the group

April 9, 2017

SK Innovation to develop long-range EV battery by 2020

SK Innovation said Sunday it would seek to turn around the fortunes of its struggling China business by developing a longer-range battery for electric vehicles by 2020. According to a company official, the South Korean battery maker is planning massive investments in research and development for electric vehicle batteries as part of efforts to deal with the recent imposition of stricter requirements by the Chinese government on Korean battery firms.  In the aftermath of the controversial deploym

April 9, 2017

Korea calls for strengthened technology cooperation with Israel

South Korea's vice trade minister called for strengthened cooperation in technology with Israel Sunday to cope with the technology-driven fourth industrial revolution, the ministry said.Speaking to a forum in Tel Aviv, Jeong Marn-ki said South Korea and Israel can create synergy by combining Israel's technological prowess and startup spirit and South Korea's manufacturing skills and information and communication technology infrastructure. Jeong Marn-ki (Yonhap)"I hope that technology cooperation

April 9, 2017

Ex-president’s aide lands at KCC amid controversy

Kim Yong-soo, a former aide to impeached President Park Geun-hye and deputy minister for information communications policy at the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, was inaugurated as a standing commissioner of the Korea Communications Commission on Thursday, amid controversy over the timing of his appointment. Kim was nominated by acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn on Wednesday to succeed Lee Ki-joo, a former KCC standing commissioner.KCC standing Commissioner Kim Yong-soo (Yonhap)The st

April 6, 2017

Samsung SDS introduces new blockchain platform Nexledger

Samsung SDS, the internet technology solutions unit of South Korea’s Samsung Group, launched a new blockchain technology-based digital platform for enterprises Thursday. With the release, the company said it aims to become a forerunner in bringing the next-generation ledger technology to the wider market.　Named Nexledger, the blockchain-based cloud computing platform for enterprises aims to appeal to corporations looking for a cost-efficient method of managing digital financial transactions and

April 6, 2017

LG G6 goes on sale in US

LG Electronics’ new flagship smartphone G6 is set to venture into the global market, starting with North America on Friday. The global launch of the G6 comes around a month after hitting the Korean market on March 10.“The G6 is to go on sale in North America on Friday via 11 mobile carriers including Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile and US Cellular. The phone is also available in Canada on the same day,” LG said Thursday.  (Yonhap)Verizon set the price of the G6 at $672, $120 cheaper than the 899

April 6, 2017

Hancom launches mobile messenger-based translation app

Hancom Inc., a South Korean software maker, said Wednesday that it has launched an artificial intelligence (AI) powered mobile messenger application that translates conversations in a foreign language.The app, available both on the Android and iOS operating systems, instantly translates texts between Korean and English, the company said. The service will be available in Chinese and Japanese sometime soon. (Yonhap)The homegrown software firm said it has applied a Neural Machine Translation (NMT)

April 5, 2017

Google out to ease YouTube ad controversy with AI, revamped monitoring system

As hundreds of companies around the world have pulled their advertisements from YouTube over inappropriate ad placement, Google is out to win back their trust by revamping its video sharing platform with the help of artificial intelligence and outside manpower.The US internet giant is training its artificially intelligent computing programs to better recognize and discern videos considered objectionable while also inviting outside actors to verify ad quality standards on YouTube.(123RF)The move

April 5, 2017

LG ramps up facility investment to W3.57tr

LG Electronics will boost its facility investment by about 20 percent to 3.57 trillion won ($3.17 billion) this year, according to the company Wednesday. In a report to the electronic disclosure system by the Financial Supervisory Service, the electronics maker unveiled its annual investment plan that reveals which business the company will focus on in 2017. (Yonhap)The company said it will allocate 544 billion won to the vehicle component division, accounting for about 15 percent of the total i

April 5, 2017

Micron, SK hynix, WD to vie for Toshiba's memory unit

South Korean chipmaker SK hynix Inc., as well as US-based Micron Technology, Inc. and Western Digital are expected to lock horns to take over the memory arm of Japan-based Toshiba Corp., industry tracker said Wednesday.During a forum here, Walter Coon, director for NAND flash technology research at the industry tracker IHS, said while one of the three bidders are widely expected to be the potential winner of Toshiba, none of them currently hold a strong advantage. (Yonhap)The remark came as Tosh

April 5, 2017

Korean medical services operate in 20 countries: data

South Korean medical services have advanced into 20 countries as of 2016, government data showed Wednesday, as local medical technology is widely expanding its contributions and presence in the global market. (123RF)According to the data by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, local medical services were found in 20 countries, including China and the United States, as of the end of last year, up from 17 tallied a year earlier.The ministry attributed the increase to the huge popularity of not only

April 5, 2017

[Exclusive] Hyundai Motor solely developing EV batteries

Hyundai Motor is developing solid-state batteries that are safe from explosions for its electric vehicles, and reportedly owns pilot-scale battery production facilities, sources close to the matter said, comparing the move to a similar approach taken by the automaker’s Japanese rival Toyota.　“Hyundai is developing solid-state batteries through its Namyang R&D Center’s battery precedence development team and it has secured a certain level of technology,” the source told The Korea Herald.Hyundai M

April 5, 2017

Korea introduces easier, simpler investment for startups

South Korea on Wednesday announced measures to attract more investments into startups by removing stumbling blocks and fast-tracking processes.During an economic meeting presided over by Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Yoo Il-ho, the government endorsed a set of eased regulations on startup investment and new investment instruments, which Seoul expects to attract not only domestic but also foreign investors.Ministers discuss measures to boost investment in startups at a ministerial meeting hel

April 5, 2017

LG prepares to enter ESS market in US

LG Electronics said Wednesday it won safety certification from an Illinois-based institution for its energy storage system as part of preparations to enter the US market. The company’s 1-megawatt ESS power conversion system has been certified by the American safety organization UL, winning the UL1741 certificate that is one of requirements for ESS suppliers in the US.  LG’s 1-MW ESS PCS (LG Electronics)LG is eyeing rapid growth of the US ESS market, which is forecast to expand from $445 million

April 5, 2017

WIT becomes first startup in Korea to develop portable probe station

Semiconductor equipment startup WIT on Thursday announced that it had recently become the first startup in Korea to develop and release a significantly smaller and lighter portable vacuum probe station. A probe station is a device used to measure the electrical properties of products, such as semiconductors and LCDs, before the assembly process. WIT’s products are primarily used to conduct tests of semiconductor wafers.“Most existing probe stations are about a meter wide and tall and are difficu

April 5, 2017

Facebook looks for tie-ups with VR, AR startups

Facebook will help promising augmented reality and virtual reality startups expand abroad in partnership with the South Korean government, it announced Tuesday.The California-based mobile social networking service operator signed an agreement with Korea Innovation Center of the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning and Institute for Information & Communications Technology Promotion to support AR and VR startups at Facebook Korea Office in southern Seoul.Under the agreement, Facebook and t

April 4, 2017