COVID-19 Creates Urgent Demand for Up To 100,000 Contact Tracers During Period of Historic Unemployment

CJ OliveNetworks, the information technology services affiliate of CJ Group, is running a hands-on coding camp for elementary school students in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, to teach them how artificial intelligence (AI) and self-driving cars work, the company said Tuesday. The AX Creative Camp is part of the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education’s Sinnaneun Gongyu Hakgyo, or “Exciting Sharing School,” program. AX refers to “AI transformation,” the use of AI across business operations. This is the second year the company has held the camp, in which employees use their AI expertise to teach coding classes as part of its corporate social responsibility work. The education office’s program is an after-school learning platform built with local community groups to help students find their interests and learn on their own. Some 130,000 students took part in about 7,200 programs last year, covering arts, sports and AI. This year’s camp is open to elementary students in the area covered by the Bucheon office of education. Lessons move step by step from the basic principles of sel

Exposure to the artificial intelligence (AI) supply chain is splitting the third-quarter earnings outlooks for LG Innotek and Samsung Electro-Mechanics. The former faces weaker earnings prospects because of its optics-heavy sales mix and sensitivity to foreign exchange fluctuations, while the latter is offsetting currency-related pressure with a growing contribution from multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) and semiconductor substrates. According to market tracker FnGuide on Tuesday, brokerages’ consensus estimate for LG Innotek’s third-quarter operating profit stood at 202.9 billion won ($152 million), down 32.8 percent from 302 billion won a month earlier. The revenue forecast was also lowered to 6.1 trillion won from 6.32 trillion won over the same period. The worsening earnings outlook weighed on LG Innotek shares, which plunged 15.47 percent on Monday. The biggest factor appears to be foreign exchange fluctuations, as raw materials and inventories purchased or produced when the won was weaker are being reflected in sales at a stronger won, hurting profit margins. “The sharp de

LG Uplus is upgrading the artificial intelligence (AI) search engine in its customer app into an active agent that completes tasks rather than just answering questions, the company said Tuesday. Korea’s third-largest mobile carrier is gradually converting the AI search in U+one, its all-in-one customer app, into what it calls an “actionable AI agent.” Through U+one, subscribers can check their plans and bills, make payments and sign up for services such as roaming and add-ons. The company launched a bill payment agent in August and a roaming agent in September. The previous AI search answered queries and then sent users to the relevant app screen. The new agents analyze customers’ actual usage data, recommend services and complete payments or sign-ups once the user confirms, all within a single conversation. The bill payment agent answers questions such as “How much is my bill this month?” When a bill has changed from the previous month, it explains why by breaking down items such as roaming, add-on services, small mobile payments and device installments. Users can pay without

As artificial intelligence (AI) drives demand for ever-faster computing, Kim Joung-ho, a professor from Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (KAIST), credited with helping lay the foundations for high-bandwidth memory (HBM), will receive a science and technology innovation award recognizing his contributions to Korea’s semiconductor industry. The Daejeon Development Committee will present the Science and Technology Innovation Award to Kim at 11 a.m. on Thursday at Lotte City Hotel Daejeon, honoring the professor for his research and role in advancing the development and commercialization of HBM. Kim, a professor in KAIST’s School of Electrical Engineering, has spent three decades researching next-generation memory technologies, including HBM, high-bandwidth flash and high-bandwidth SRAM, according to the committee. He proposed core concepts and the basic architecture of HBM and participated in key design and technology validation work during its development in 2009, contributing to SK hynix’s commercialization of the technology in December 2013, which the committee des

Samsung Electronics showcased next-generation memory and storage technologies at the 2026 OCP Global Summit in the United States on Monday (local time), highlighting its efforts to improve artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and expand cooperation with global technology companies. The Korean tech giant jointly demonstrated a memory expansion solution with AMD and displayed products related to AI chipmakers Groq and Nvidia at the event, where Samsung participated as a Diamond Sponsor. As AI models grow larger and AI agents handle increasingly complex tasks, demand is rising for memory capacity, faster data processing and more efficient storage. Samsung presented technologies designed to address these challenges across three areas: computing speed, memory expansion and data storage. A key highlight was the joint demonstration with AMD of a Compute Express Link (CXL)-based memory expansion solution. CXL allows processors and other computing components to share memory resources, helping AI systems access additional capacity without relying solely on memory installed directly in indi

Sales of bonds and certificates of deposits (CDs) in Korea rose more than 11 percent in the third quarter of this year from a year earlier, data showed Tuesday. The value of debt instruments issued during the third quarter came to 178.3 trillion won ($134 billion), up 11.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Securities Depository. Bond sales jumped 13.8 percent on-year to 166.4 trillion won, while CD issuance sank 16.8 percent to 11.9 trillion won. Compared with a quarter ago, however, sales of bonds and CDs fell 1.9 percent. The Bank of Korea lifted its key rate to 3 percent over two straight meetings in July and August, marking the first back-to-back rate hikes since January 2023.

SK earthon, a Korean oil exploration and production (E&P) company, said Tuesday oil production has recently begun at an offshore field in Vietnam where it holds a stake. U.S.-based Murphy Oil Corp., the operator of Block 15-1/05, began production at the Lac Da Vang field in the Cuu Long Basin late last month, SK earthon said in a press release. SK earthon holds a 25 percent stake in the block, having invested in the project in 2007. Murphy Oil and Vietnam's state-run PetroVietnam Exploration Production Corp. (PVEP) hold 40 percent and 35 percent stakes, respectively. The block is estimated to contain total oil reserves of 60 million barrels, with production expected to reach up to 25,000 barrels per day when the project is fully developed, the company said. "We will continue to expand its oil exploration and development activities in Vietnam to secure a stable energy supply amid rising geopolitical tensions and supply chain disruptions," a company official said. SK earthon has been expanding its E&P operations in China and Southeast Asia to help improve the profitability of its parent com

LS Electric said Tuesday it has signed a 185.3 billion-won ($138.7 million) contract with global power solutions provider Bloom Energy to supply switchgear and distribution transformers. With the latest deal, the Korean electrical equipment maker's cumulative orders from Bloom Energy have exceeded $500 million since April last year. Under the contract, LS Electric will supply power equipment for a fuel cell-based on-site power generation project at a major U.S. technology company's data center in Pennsylvania. The Korean company plans to deliver 38-kilovolt (kV) high-voltage switchgear and distribution transformers between April and July 2027.

Korean police are working with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to trace the hackers behind recent cyberattacks targeting Korea's financial institutions, sources said Tuesday. According to the sources, Korean authorities, including the Korean National Police Agency, have recently launched the process for cooperation with the FBI. The move aims to obtain critical investigation data, such as account details and access logs of major U.S.-based global cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI) companies. U.S. cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike earlier suggested that a 26-year-old Chinese man from China's Guangdong Province might be behind the attacks, but the person has denied involvement. Local authorities are reportedly considering the possibility of other or different individuals being responsible for the recent cyberattacks, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Police are analyzing data used by CrowdStrike to estimate the hackers' identities, as well as documents suggesting ties to a Chinese distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack group. When ask

The Presidential Security Service (PSS) will open a 1.32-kilometer-long mountain trail near the presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae to the public, nearly six decades after it was designated off-limits, officials said Tuesday. The upcoming public opening of the trail in the southwestern part of Mount Bukak, located behind Cheong Wa Dae, marks the latest and final opening of the three major trails on Mount Bukak previously off-limits to the public, according to PSS officials. A 2.2-km trail in the northern part of Mount Bukak was first opened to the public in 2020, followed by a 3-km trail in the southeastern part of the mountain in 2022. The public will be allowed access to the new southwestern trail around the clock starting on Saturday, according to the PSS. With the upcoming opening, Mount Bukak will be fully open to the public, PSS chief Hwang In-kwon noted.

Discarded festival banners are getting a second act as limited-edition accessories, with the Seoul Museum of History transforming last year’s European Film Festival promotional materials into card wallets and mini bags that combine distinctive designs with a push toward sustainability. The museum will begin selling the upcycled merchandise at its museum shop on Thursday, using recycled materials to reduce waste from exhibitions and cultural events. The products were developed in collaboration with Van a Banner, an upcycling company led by Lee Ban-seok, which helped turn the used polyvinyl chloride banners into practical everyday items. Recycled fabric is used for the products’ linings and mesh components, extending the reuse effort beyond the original banner material. Because different sections of the banners are cut and incorporated into each item, the finished products vary in color and pattern, making each piece unique, the museum said. The card wallet features a mesh pocket for cards and a zippered compartment for small belongings, while the mini bag has a magnetic flap designed f

Jeonbuk National University's Business Incubation Center is helping promising local startups enter global markets by developing overseas sales channels and strengthening their brand competitiveness. The university said the center is working to expand growth opportunities for local businesses by turning meetings with overseas buyers into export partnerships and providing follow-up support. These efforts are part of the 24th World Korean Business Convention Participation Support Project, which is being carried out under the 2026 Specialized Capacity BI Support Program. The project is jointly run by the Business Incubation Center, the Jeonbuk Institute for Food-Bioindustry, the Korea Institute of Convergence Textiles and Jeonbuk Science College. The initiative aims to identify and nurture promising local businesses with innovative products and strong entrepreneurial capabilities and help them expand into domestic and overseas markets. Three participating companies — JK Nanobio, Global Clam and CellCore — met with overseas buyers at the 24th World Korean Business Convention in Incheon las