At a historic gathering at OpenAI’s Silicon Valley, California headquarters, ten forward-thinking Korean businesses were chosen to work with the multinational AI behemoth. The Korean Ministry of SMEs and Startups sponsored the “K-Startup and OpenAI Matching Day,” which provided a crucial forum for collaboration and creativity in the field of artificial intelligence.
Out of 220 firms, 14 South Korean startups were exhibited at the event. These finalists were chosen after a difficult selection process that OpenAI and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) in South Korea jointly launched in December.
The OpenAI event featured a dynamic presentation session where each startup showcased its unique AI-driven solutions and potential. About 40 stakeholders attended, including representatives from startups, officials from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and prominent figures from OpenAI.
CEO Sam Altman’s Perspectives and Counsel
The event’s high point was when OpenAI CEO Sam Altman unexpectedly showed up and engaged company representatives in a lively Q&A session. Altman’s attendance demonstrated OpenAI’s dedication to developing new talent and offered priceless insights into the direction AI technology will take in the future.
Altman warned against relying too much on technology during the talk and stressed the value of companies concentrating on core business concepts. Altman said, “Startups mistakenly think that they can succeed because they use magic technology or that general rules do not apply, but this is a big mistake. It does not mean that business physics, which requires efforts to hire talented people, does not apply,”
Ten exceptional Korean firms were chosen for this year’s collaboration program after a thorough examination by OpenAI. Among them, ASLEEP and Cliwant were singled out for special distinction for their innovative work using AI to transform a variety of industries. Whereas Cliwant is committed on bringing AI integration to bidding systems and modernizing them, ASLEEP provides an API that uses AI technology to track sleep stages through breathing sounds.
DK Medi Info, Marina Chain, Next Payments, Nine Watts, Run Korean in Korean, Turing, Waddle, and We Laser are a few other noteworthy participants that are all set to advance their respective fields through AI integration.
Using virtual patient data, DK Medi Info has created and recorded a nursing diagnosis system. In order to improve ChatGPT’s inadequate level of Korean, RunKoreanInKorean offers prompts and datasets for fine-tuning. Meanwhile, Marina Chain offers “Scope 3” carbon accounting, which uses AI technology to realize carbon accounting for the full shipping, port, and logistics supply chain.
Assistance and Advantages for Chosen Startups
The Ministry of SMEs and firms will provide up to 200 million won in commercialization money, credits for using OpenAI services, and professional mentorship and consulting to the chosen firms.
Oh Young-joo, Minister of SMEs and Startups, expressed hope about the partnership and noted how it may help transform Korean startups into AI firms with a worldwide competitive edge. “We hope that the startups participating in the event will grow into AI companies with global competitiveness through collaboration with Open AI. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups will work to improve the technology development capabilities of promising domestic startups and expand their global presence.”
The occasion represents a critical turning point in Korea’s development into a center for AI innovation. It serves as an example of the revolutionary potential of global cooperation in opening up new doors and advancing AI research as a whole.