2025-01-09

CES Organizer Highlights Korea’s ‘Water Tech’... "A Key Future Technology" From AI robots to ultrasound technology... Attendees Drawn to Korean Innovations Korean Startups Have the Highest Participation Among All Countries

On January 7 (local time), the world’s largest IT exhibition, CES 2025, was held at the Venetian Expo Eureka Park in Las Vegas, USA. At this global startup showcase, Korea’s ‘Water Tech’ garnered significant attention. At the K-water booth, 19 domestic startups collaborating with the Korea Water Resources Corporation presented various water technologies that captured the interest of visitors. Brian Komiskey, Senior Director and Futurist at the event's organizing body, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), said, “This is a leading example of how innovative technology can solve global issues like water contamination and scarcity,” adding, “In addition to AI, water tech is gaining recognition as a key future technology.”

One particularly eye-catching booth was that of the ultrasound device startup ‘First Lab,’ which won a CES 2025 Innovation Award. First Lab introduced a technology that focuses ultrasound waves on the center of a roll-like paper towel, enabling the breakdown of toxic substances without using absorbents or additives. This technology is gaining attention in industries such as water, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. European pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca is currently collaborating with First Lab on a medical waste treatment project. Sun-Ae Hwang, Vice President of First Lab, said, “Global companies are interested in using ultrasound to extract specific ingredients without secondary contamination,” and, “We are actively seeking international expansion through CES.”

In the same Eureka Park, crowds gathered at the booth of the Korean startup ‘Thoth,’ which won four CES 2025 Innovation Awards for its AI robotics technology. Thoth has developed a robot that can automatically program itself by learning from a human operator’s demonstrations. This technology, which is also being focused on by major players like NVIDIA and Google, was especially highlighted for its application in electric vehicle battery disassembly. Unlike traditional robots, which require precisely arranged standardized parts, Thoth’s robot can recognize and work with even deformed waste batteries. Sang-Hyeong Lee, CEO of Thoth, explained, “The waste battery industry has high growth potential, which is why we decided to introduce AI robots in this field,” and “We are currently supplying products to cell manufacturers, car manufacturers, and local governments.”

At another booth showcasing innovative software-only technologies, visitors were drawn to sleep technology startup ‘Asleep.’ The company presented AI-based sleep analysis technology that can detect breathing sounds and analyze sleep patterns from a distance of up to 3 meters, accurately identifying sleep apnea. Jaehyun Bae, Director of Asleep, mentioned, “Sleep technology is closely related to industries like beauty and construction.” This technology has been applied to smart home devices from companies like Kyungdong Navien, Samsung Electronics, and Philips.

The fintech company ‘GhostPass,’ which received the highest innovation award in the fintech category, also attracted attention. GhostPass developed a technology that stores biometric data such as fingerprints and faces on the user’s smartphone, rather than a central server, allowing simultaneous authentication and payment. For example, when a user inputs their fingerprint at a kiosk in a restaurant, the fingerprint data stored on the smartphone is matched, completing both authentication and payment automatically. Seon-Gwan Lee, CEO of GhostPass, stated, “It took over ten years of trial and error to perfect this technology,” and “We expect this technology to become a standard future payment method and are currently supplying it to major retail franchises and NICE Information Communication.”

A total of 625 Korean startups and institutions participated in CES 2025’s Eureka Park, the largest representation from any country out of the 1,300 exhibitors. CTA officials remarked, “This year, 3,400 products from 33 categories were submitted for the Innovation Award, with Korean startups leading the way in various fields.” Richard Kelly, an IT expert who has attended CES for 24 years, commented, “Every year, the number of Korean companies at Eureka Park keeps growing, and I’m always amazed to see it,” adding, “In the past, most products were far from commercialization, but recently, the products being showcased by Korean startups have high levels of completeness, leading global distributors to visit in search of collaboration opportunities.”

source : https://biz.chosun.com/it-science/ict/2025/01/09/SGGFRHPEC5GJVHAMXRLOAEP4YA/