Latest News

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  ​Convenience store chain CU to build metaverse-based ecommerce platform SEOUL -- BGF Retail, the operator of South Korea's top convenience store chain CU, will establish a metaverse-based ecommerce platform to enable users to receive actual products after purchasing items using avatars in the virtual space. Some 30 stores will be created on Jeff World, a metaverse platform where users can engage in shopping and many other leisure activities. "Consumers can receive items purchased through Jeff World through delivery or by visiting nearby offlin 2022-12-23
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  Famous web novel 'Dating My Best Friend's Sister' to be recreated into digital cartoon in S. Korea SEOUL -- "Dating My Best Friends Sister," a romance web novel written in English will be recreated into a web cartoon in Korean. The web novel that depicts a secret love story between a young lady named "Kaitlyn" and her boyfriend "Cole" has gained some 400,000 subscribers since it was released in 2019 on Radish Media, a United States-based web novel platform. Cole is a friend of Kaitlyn's brother in the novel. Kaitlyn had a crush on Cole during he 2022-12-22
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  Farm Hannong's biodegradable fertilizer approved by state as new technology SEOUL -- Farm Hannong's photodecomposition fertilizer that slowly releases its composition during the breakdown was approved by the state as new technology. Farm Hannong is an agricultural technology subsidiary of LG Chem, South Korea's top chemical company. Slow-acting or slow-releasing fertilizers are coated with polymers to deliberately increase the time at which fertilizers are released into paddocks. However, the polymer coating makes fertilizers' lifespan more tha 2022-12-22
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  Bebefinn series gains explosive popularity on Netflix in English-speaking countries SEOUL -- "Bebefinn," a three-dimensional video animation show featuring the five-member family of a 20-month-old baby named "Finn," has garnered popularity mainly in English-speaking countries on Netflix. The animation show created by South Korea's educational entertainment company Pinkfong ranked in the top 10 on the over-the-top (OTT) service's daily chart featuring popular children's content in nine countries. Finn is an animated child who loves t 2022-12-22
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  ​Lunit's AI solution for breast cancer to be provided in Hong Kong and Mongolia SEOUL -- "Lunit INSIGHT MMG," a solution specializing in detecting breast cancer created by South Korea's medical artificial intelligence company Lunit, was adopted by a medical diagnostic imaging center in Hong Kong and a state-run hospital in Mongolia. The adoption of AI solution can increase work efficiency by replacing human experts who are prone to making mistakes. Lunit's AI-based solution uses software robots to compare and analyze x-rays and medical images 2022-12-22
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  Marine research foundation develops pet dental care products using algae material SEOUL -- Jeonnam Marine Bio Research Center operated by Jeonnam Bioindustry Foundation, a private research foundation based in Naju City some 280 kilometers (173 miles) south of Seoul, developed a pet dental care product using antibiotic material extracted from kelp, a type of brown algae commonly found in coastlines. Kelp is a brown algae seaweed that grows up to dozens of meters. The type of seaweed is very abundant on the coastlines of the world. They are widely used in Korean a 2022-12-21
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  [SUMMARY] Daily News Selection by Aju Business Daily on December 20, 2022 The following stories are the daily summary of news in South Korea on December 20, 2022. SEOUL -- US and S. Korea conduct joint air exercise In an effort to boost the legitimacy of America's "extended deterrence," South Korea and the United States on December 20 engaged in joint air exercises using B-52 strategic bombers and F-22 stealth fighters. In the midst of tensions brought on by the North's launch of two medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBM) on Dece 2022-12-21
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  KT hopes to secure corporate and government clients through metaverse-based conference platform SEOUL -- South Korea's major telecom company KT aims to attract various state organizations and private companies using its metaverse platform which provides artificial intelligence-based virtual assistants and translation services. The platform called "KT Meta Lounge" also enables users to create customized virtual spaces suited for different meeting purposes such as social, casual, and company meetings. KT Meta Lounge is a virtual platform that consists of three bui 2022-12-21
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  ​Hyundai Mobis works with Israeli startup to develop remote control tower system for autonomous driving SEOUL -- To help mobility service operators control autonomous vehicles in cases of emergency, South Korean car parts maker Hyundai Mobis partnered with Ottopia, a software company in Israel, to develop a control tower solution that can remotely move unmanned mobility platforms or modify their routes through screens. Self-driving vehicles or autonomous robots operate based on data collected through sensors and cameras. Autonomous vehicles operate stably under ordinary circumstance 2022-12-21
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  LG Electronics 'monster' NFT digital virtual shoes to be showcased at CES 2023 SEOUL -- At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), a global tech event to be held in January in Las Vegas, LG Electronics will unveil "monster" digital virtual shoes made with non-fungible token (NFT) technology, along with a shoe care and storage exhibition where luxury sneakers and limited editions can be stored with optimal humidity and temperature. Customers can collect 5,500 unique designs of NFT shoes while managing and appreciating actual and NFT shoes together throug 2022-12-21
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  State certification for colostrum-based cosmetics material developed by Shinsegae International and Farmskin SEOUL -- A new technology developed by the fashion unit of South Korea's retail group Shinsegae and its domestic partner, Farmskin, to produce a raw material for whitening cosmetics with milk cow colostrum hydrolysate has secured state certification for commercial production. It will be applied to high-functional skin care lines for commercial production in 2023. The technology is the result of a two-year joint study by Shinsegae International (SI) and Farm Skin (Farmskin) whic 2022-12-21
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  LG Chem makes investment in battery recycling company targeting N. American market SEOUL -- LG Chem, a chemical unit of LG Group, would secure its foothold in the North American lithium-ion battery recycling market that stood at $77.8 million in 2021 through a strategic investment in Jae Young Tech, a domestic battery recycling company. A joint venture will be established by the end of 2023. Because the lifespan of batteries that are used in electric vehicles (EVs) is about 10 years, an enormous amount of battery waste can be produced. According to data release 2022-12-21
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  Researchers develop low-cost silicon photonics technique for super-fast data transfer SEOUL -- South Korean researchers have developed a silicon photonics chip and modules for optical semiconductors. The chip that uses infrared light signals to send and receive data at the lightning speed of 100 gigabits per second can be applied to many sectors including optical communications, optical routers and processors, and long-range telecommunications. For ordinary communication processing equipment, silicon chips that receive and send electrical signals through metallic ca 2022-12-21
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  SK E&S wins state approval to use LNG cold energy for blue hydrogen plant SEOUL -- SK E&S, an energy company affiliated with SK Group, joined hands with a domestic public electricity supplier to build a plant that can produce and liquefy some 250,000 tons of blue hydrogen per year by using the so-called "cold energy" that was used to cool and compress natural gas into liquid form for storage and transportation. SK E&S and Korea Midland Power (KOMIPO) would invest about five trillion won ($3.9 billion) to build the world's largest bl 2022-12-20
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  [SUMMARY] Daily News Selection by Aju Business Daily on December 19, 2022 The following stories are the daily summary of news in South Korea on December 19, 2022. SEOUL -- S. Korean baseball league's MVB Lee Jung-hoo considers joining the MLB Lee Jung-hoo, the current MVP of the South Korean baseball league, informed his team that he would prefer to use the posting system to enter the major leagues following the upcoming season. When he paid a visit to the Kiwoom Heroes' office in Seoul's Gocheok Sky Dome, Lee let them know his intentions. 2022-12-20
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  ToolGen partners with gene therapy company to develop special treatment for progeria SEOUL -- ToolGen, a South Korean company which develops genome editing technology, partnered with ANL Bio, a domestic bio company specializing in gene therapy, to develop treatments for progeria, an extremely rare genetic disorder that causes rapid aging among young children. ToolGen's genetic scissors used to cut out specific genetic information in cells, will be combined with ANL's adeno-associated virus, a non-enveloped virus that can be engineered to deliver drugs to target 2022-12-20
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  State research institute localizes core software for metal 3D printers SEOUL -- A South Korean research institute has localized core software for metal 3D printers to improve the quality of products. The software based on the opinions of 3D printing engineers can create codes and routes which decide the output of lasers and the course they move to create metal 3D-printed objects. Metal 3D printer shoots lasers into a base of powdered metals to weld them. Exact coordinates and the power of lasers must be calculated in order to create fine-quality print 2022-12-20
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  Researchers discover new ways to commercialize batteries with manganese spinel cathode SEOUL -- A surge in the price of nickel and other metals used for lithium-ion electric vehicle batteries prompted researchers to utilize inexpensive manganese (Mn) without performance degradation. The of Mn-rich chemistry has attracted attention as a promising option to realize cathode materials with high economic sustainability, price competitiveness, and reasonable energy density. The state-run Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) said that its energy materials resea 2022-12-20
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  State agency localizes glasshouse plastic cover film to reduce reliance on Japanese products SEOUL -- A state agricultural technology development agency has localized plastic cover films for greenhouses in an effort to reduce South Korea's dependency on foreign raw materials, especially from Japan. The new film's durability is equal to Japanese counterparts and it can be used for more than four years. Cover films for greenhouses are basically durable plastic films that protect crops from ultraviolet light, rain, hail, and other harmful environmental aspects. Becaus 2022-12-20
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  Hanwha Systems selected for development of joint maritime tactical data link SEOUL -- Hanwha Systems, a key defense contractor affiliated with Hanwha Group, was selected for a military project to develop the Korean version of Link-22, a secure digital radio link used by NATO members as a tactical data link that interconnects tactical data systems and enables the exchange of tactical data among military units. In modern warfare, superior situation awareness is crucial for rapid command decisions and precisely guided munition. The main communicational enabler 2022-12-20