Govt signs air traffic control cooperation deal with China, Japan, ICAO

Responding to heightened public interest in environmental protection, Nongshim will aggressively promote its vegan food brand Veggie Garden this year, the South Korean food company said Tuesday. Veggie Garden is a convenience food brand developed by the Nongshim R&D Center and the group’s affiliate Taekyung Nongsan, using a manufacturing technology for plant-based meat alternatives. “After we came up with our test products in 2017, we worked with famous vegan chefs in Seoul t

General Motors Korea pulled off a strong performance last year in overseas markets, the automaker said Tuesday. The company shipped 285,499 vehicles overseas last year, ranking top among foreign-invested car brands here in terms of export volume, the company said. GM Motors beat Renault Samsung Motors and SsangYong Motor by about 14 times. In the domestic market, GM Korea said it sold 82,954 cars in Korea in 2020, losing by a small margin to Renault Samsung and SsangYong, which sold 95,93

CTA eyes growth of digital health, intelligence of things, augmented reality and 5G

Kolon Industries, a South Korean industrial materials company, said Tuesday it will expand its tire cord plant in Vietnam to increase exports of the product from the Southeast Asian country. Kolon Industries will invest 68 billion won ($62 million) in its wholly owned Kolon Industries Binh Duong Company Ltd. to help the Vietnamese subsidiary expand the plant by September next year, the company said in a regulatory filing. Tire cords are used as reinforcing materials for tires, designed to kee

Foreigners’ investment pledges to South Korea dropped 11.1 percent last year due to the effects of the coronavirus outbreak, government data showed Tuesday. According to the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Energy, foreigners pledged investments worth $20.75 billion in 2020, down from $23.33 billion a year ago. Of the investment pledges, the amount executed came in at $11.09 billion, a 17 percent dive on-year from $13.36 billion. “Foreign direct investment decreased significan

Nexon, NCSoft, WeMade make strides into AI, payment gateway, cryptocurrency

Ultium Cells, the electric vehicle battery joint venture between LG Energy Solution and General Motors, will hire 400 employees by the end of this year and 700 more by the end of next year, LG and GM said Tuesday. Founded in December 2019, the fledgling Ultium Cells currently has staff for human resources, training and workplace safety management. It is building a $2.3 billion facility in Lordstown, Ohio, with an annual production capacity of more than 30 gigawatt-hours. “Ultium Cells

A social media-based artificial intelligence chatbot has been suspended in South Korea after stirring a series of controversies with discriminatory and vulgar language, leaving lessons for all parties involved in the related sectors dealing with AI. The chatbot Lee Luda, developed by local startup firm Scatter Lab, was introduced last December to run on Facebook Messenger. Designed to mimic a 20-year-old woman, it has attracted more than 400,000 users via Facebook so far. It, however, became

Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday introduced its first-ever water purifier as the tech giant enters the fast-growing home water purifier market amid the pandemic-induced stay-at-home trend. Samsung unveiled the BESPOKE water purifier that is highlighted by space-efficient design and easy care features at its media event for the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021. The new water purifier will be launched in South Korea in the first quarter of year, the company added. Samsung's BESPOKE wat

Hanwha Techwin Co., a surveillance tech firm in South Korea, said Tuesday it has signed a deal with the Egyptian government to supply security solutions for its state-run projects. Under the deal with the Ministry of Military Production in Egypt, the company will set up security systems in some 10 cities, which includes surveillance camera installments in major facilities. The value of the deal was not disclosed. Hanwha Techwin said some of its products will be manufactured by Egyptian electro

LG Electronics Inc. on Tuesday said Google's cloud gaming service will be available on its smart TVs as the South Korean tech powerhouse eyes to expand its TV sales with better service offerings. LG said it will be the first TV manufacturer to support Google's Stadia via its smart TV platform webOS. The company expects the new service to be launched on its smart TVs in the second half of 2021. "Supporting Stadia on LG TVs is our commitment to customers that gaming is an increasingly impor

South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. said Tuesday its Avante compact has been named this year's North American Car of the Year in the passenger car segment. The Avante, the Genesis G80 sedan and the Nissan Sentra sedan advanced to the finalists for the 2021 North American Car of the Year, Utility of the Year and Truck of the Year (NACTOY). NACTOY chose the Avante over the two models due to its innovative design and advanced features, such as a digital key and high fuel efficiency, Hyundai said in a

LG Electronics Inc. is "well positioned" to become one of the industry's leaders in the area of electric and connected vehicles with its agreement to set up a joint venture with Canadian auto parts maker Magna International Inc., the company's chief executive said. Brian Kwon, the CEO of LG Electronics, appeared at Magna's press conference for the all-digital Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021 on Monday (US time) and revealed his hopes for the new joint venture with Magna, which is

LS Electric, a South Korean producer of power solutions, aims to grow 10 percent annually and generate 70 percent of its earnings from overseas, the company said Monday. Unveiling a corporate vision for the next decade, the company’s Chairman Koo Ja-kyun urged executives and employees to act proactively to go beyond its traditional businesses of electricity and automation and transform into a global digital leader. “The company must continue to evolve to find new business oppor