Samsung Electronics said Thursday that it has acquired Oxford Semantic Technologies, a UK-based startup, to enhance the on-device AI integrated into its Galaxy series. According to the tech giant, the acquisition was formalized Tuesday, though the financial details have yet to be disclosed. The acquired firm, founded in 2017 by three professors from the University of Oxford, leads in knowledge graphs, a key technology for advancing and personalizing artificial intelligence. This technology, whic

South Korea is close to securing a landmark contract to build nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic in a deal valued at approximately $17.3 billion, with finalization expected by March 2025. On Thursday, Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy Ahn Duk-geun held a press briefing to confirm the Czech government’s selection of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power as the preferred bidder. "The Czech government announced last night that it has chosen KHNP as the preferred bidder for the

Daewoo Engineering & Construction has been chosen as the preferred bidder to build nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic, the company said Thursday. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy earlier in the day, the Czech government has selected the state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power as the preferred bidder to build four nuclear power units in the country. If the final contract is signed in March 2025, Daewoo E&C will be responsible for the construction. Daewoo E

SK Innovation merges with SK E&S; SK On amalgamates with SK Trading International, SK Enterm

The Volvo XC40 has emerged as Korea’s best-selling premium compact sport utility vehicle in the first half of this year. The XC40 sold 1,089 units between January and June, with its B4 Ultimate all-wheel drive trim leading in single-trim sales, according to data from the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association. In second place for single-trim sales was the MINI Cooper Countryman with 945 units, followed by the BMW X1 2.0 with 727 units. The same XC40 model secured second

Tmax Group announced Thursday that the research institute under its database management system (DBMS) specialist subsidiary, TmaxTibero, has been recognized by the Ministry of Science and ICT as the top corporate research and development center for the first half of 2024. Among 24 exemplary corporate research institutes chosen by the ministry, two, including TmaxTibero, were highlighted for their global growth potential and designated as top-tier. TmaxTibero's research institute focuses on

Governance shakeup pits Bobcat's profits against Robotics' potential

US tech giant Google has recently discontinued offering real-time popular searches in Korea, a feature long banned by its Korean rivals such as Naver and Daum due to the possibility of manipulating public opinion. “We have decided to remove the feature from Google Search in Korea. The feature is no longer available here,” Google Korea said in a statement Wednesday. No further elaboration on the reason and timing of the suspension was given. Naver and Daum suspended their popular sear

South Korean franchise Mom's Touch announced on Wednesday a series of collaborative marketing initiatives at its recently opened store in Tokyo, partnering with various industries, from Samsung’s Galaxy brand to Samyang’s Buldak ramyeon. Since its opening in April, the Shibuya store in Tokyo has attracted 100,000 cumulative customers and generated 100 million yen ($0.7 million) in sales within 40 days. As part of the move to further boost sales, the store offers free burger-to

Celltrion’s subcutaneous injection formulation of the autoimmune disease treatment infliximab, known as Remsima SC or Zymfentra, has secured a bigger footing in Europe, the Korean biosimilar giant said Wednesday. Citing the global pharmaceutical market research firm IQVIA, Celltrion said that Remsima SC made up about 21 of the market share across Europe in the first quarter of this year, the highest figure since its European launch in 2020. The company attributed the robust growth to its

HD Hyundai announced Wednesday the establishment of its naval technology research institute, aiming to tap into the future naval vessel market. The opening ceremony, held on the same day, was attended by about 50 participants, including HD Hyundai Vice Chairman Chung Ki-sun and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering CEO Kim Sung-jun. The new research lab is a reorganized entity from the naval technology center of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' special ships business unit and will operat

Kia on Tuesday presented the most cutting-edge technologies applied to craft the automaker’s latest all-electric vehicle EV3 to auto journalists in Seoul, showcasing several new technologies developed to make the car a leader in popularizing EVs amid slowing EV growth. The EV3 has been equipped with the i-Pedal 3.0, which offers different levels of regenerative braking to allow more flexible ways to slow down the vehicle. Unlike the automaker’s previous i-Pedal technology which only

SK Innovation Co. and SK E&S Co., two major energy affiliates of SK Group, are set to hold separate board meetings Wednesday to discuss a proposed merger of the two companies, industry sources said. If the merger is approved, it will create the biggest energy company in South Korea, with combined assets of 106 trillion won ($76.5 billion). The merger of SK Innovation, SK Group's energy subholding company, and SK E&S, a privately owned recycled energy firm, is part of the group'

US governor vows full support for Korean businesses to weather uncertainties

South Korean airline-to-logistics conglomerate Hanjin Group's logistics arm Hanjin Logistics Corp. said Tuesday that it has expanded operations by expanding the size of the Los Angeles fulfillment center by 50 percent. Upon the expansion, Hanjin Logistics President and CEO Noh Sam-sug and President and Chief Marketing Officer Emily Cho conducted an on-site inspection during a five-day visit to the US earlier this month. The aim is to provide a one-stop logistics solution so Korean companies