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Venture Incubation Program: "Startup KAIST"
Making KAIST’s research accomplishments accessible outside the university to benefit Korea and beyond, as well as spurring the process of knowledge and technology transfer between academia and industry
KAIST launched a new business incubation program, called “Startup KAIST,” to support the growth of venture companies in late November 2013.
The program fosters a spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship on campus while advancing the development and commercialization of new discoveries and technologies made at the labs of the university.
Startup KAIST promotes entrepreneurship culture among faculty, students, researchers, and alumni; supports the full cycle of a startup ecosystem from the introduction, growth, maturity, and liquidation of new companies; encourages the development of globally sustainable startups; and collaborates with the Daedeok Innopolis, the largest science and technology research, development and business complex in Korea that is located adjacent to KAIST in Daejeon, to expand the startup program to the nation and the global community.
Under the program, the Startup KAIST Studio will be established. The entire third floor of the Education Support Building on campus is dedicated to startup activities where aspiring entrepreneurs come to network, develop new ideas and innovations, and share information and knowledge.
With a total of 24,000 square feet space, the Studio has neither partitions nor cubicles, thereby promoting open communication. It has seminar rooms, a high-tech-equipped conference room, an exhibition hall, offices, and cafés. The Startup Studio will be available for use from March 2014.
In addition to administrative services, Startup KAIST will offer a variety of courses, forums, and conferences on such subjects as entrepreneurship, technology management, intellectual property, and venture capital, along with training and mentoring programs on how to organize a company, secure funding, and pursue entrepreneurial visions.
Seeking active collaborations with alumni, industry, and other science and technology universities through Startup KAIST, the university will redouble its endeavor to form early-stage venture companies. Seasoned professional coordinators or volunteering entrepreneurs will stay at the Startup KAIST Studio to provide timely support for members of the KAIST community.
President Steve Kang said, “Startup KAIST is a one-stop service to create a new, strong company, small and medium size in particular, around innovations and disruptive technologies developed at KAIST and its adjacent research complex, Daedeok Innopolis.”“One of the important roles assigned to a research university today is to become a catalyst for knowledge and technology transfer among society, industry, and academia, upon which the advancement of humanity can build. KAIST will become a sounding board for engineers and scientists aspiring to launch a venture company to address their questions and concerns and to guide them through the startup process,” President Kang explained the need for implementing the Startup KAIST program.
Inside of the Startup KAIST Studio
2013.12.04 View 8370 -
Wearable computer follows suit of smart phones
KAIST hosts “Wearable Computer Competition” in KI Building, Daejeon Campus, on the 7th-8th of November
“Computer that controls smart phones with the movement of facial muscles” and 12 other wearable computers to be presented
As technology transitions to “Wearable Computers,” KAIST is hosting its 9th “Wearable Computer Competition.” The competition will take place over two days, 7th-8th of November, in KI building, on the main Daejeon Campus.
The “wearable computer” is designed to enable users to use the computer whilst moving by limiting its weight and size so that it can be worn as a part of the body and clothing. Wearable computers have been considered the future of information technology (IT) ever since smart phones and other miniaturized IT devices made an appearance.
The “Wearable Computer Competition” has been held since 2005 under the leadership of Professor Hoi-Jun Yoo from the KAIST Department of Electrical Engineering. It is the only competition in the nation where undergraduate students use their unique ideas and newest technology to produce computers that seem to be existed only in sci-fi movies and comic books.
A total of 15 teams out of 70 made the competition and went through a rigorous selection process based on written applications and interviews to enter the final. The teams at the final received USD 1,400 and IT devices including smart phones to produce a wearable computer.
KAIST increased the number of finalists from the last year"s 10 to 15 this year as the wearable computer industry is extending, and there is growing interest in the computer around the world after the launch of Google Glass and Samsung Galaxy Gear.
This year’s entries included a product for quadriplegic patients to control smart phones with the movement of facial muscles, which attracted public interest. The product in the form of a headband can be worn by quadriplegic patients or someone with limited hand movement. The user can activate the product by clenching their molars and move the mouse on the smart phones with the movement of muscles in their face.
Furthermore, a wearable band shaped device that can control smart phones with simple hand movements is also attracting interest. Broad hand movements of the user allows him/her to receive calls and take photos, and handshakes between users control sharing of files. Body communication can be used to protect private information without a password or locking the device.
In addition, gloves and shoes that can sense the user’s movement to play an instrument without the instrument being present; a cane for the blind that converts visual information to tactile; a belt that protects children from sexual crimes; and a game where the user can be Super Mario to play and other practical products are presented.
The chairman of the competition, Professor Yoo said, “As you can see from the launch of Samsung Galaxy Gear, wearable computers will follow smart phones as the leader of IT devices in the next generation.” He continued, “This competition and workshop is an opportunity to increase public interest in wearable computers and serves as a communication platform for experts to view the present and the future of wearable computers.”
The “Wearable Computer Workshop” will be held this year as well. The workshop under the theme of “the present and the future of wearable computers” invited Professor Kyu-Ho Park, Vice President of KAIST, as a keynote speaker to talk on “ubiquitous, fashionable computers.” Moreover, Samsung’s Dong-Jun Geum and the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute’s Hyeon-Tae Jeong will lecture on the “trend and direction of progress of wearable devices” and the “technological trend and prospect of industry of wearable computers,” respectively.
To participate in the competition or the workshop, please visit the website (http://www.ufcom.org)
for further information.
2013.11.28 View 9345 -
UN biological weapons expert gives lecture at KAIST
KAIST’s student organization, the ICISTS Organizing Committee, invited United Nations Security Council expert Terence Taylor to deliver a speech under the topic of ‘Terrorists and Scientists: Biological Weapons and its impact on Global Society’. The lecture took place on November 19 on the Daejeon campus.
Taylor shared his experiences as a biochemical weapons expert at Iraq and discussed the fast-approaching future of the world with biochemical weapons.
Terence Taylor is a former British military officer, who served various governmental and non-governmental organizations around the world, including UK and U.S. agencies, as well as the UN. His current work involves the non-proliferation and disarmament of nuclear or biological weapons, toxic substances and other weapons of mass destruction.
ICISTS Organizing Committee is a student organization run by of KAIST students. Since 2005, it has actively held one of the largest student conferences in Asia, ICISTS-KAIST, at KAIST every year. "ICISTS" stands for “International Conference for the Integration of Science, Technology, and Society”, which conveys its vision in achieving a harmony between science and society.
UN Security Council expert Terence Taylor
2013.11.28 View 8025 -
Cambridge University Press and HISTAC to Publish Science and Civilization in Korea
The KAIST Research Institute for the History of Science, Technology and Civilization of Korea (HISTAC) and Cambridge University Press have agreed to publish a 10-volume collection entitled “Science and Civilization in Korea” in collaboration with the Needham Research Institute.
HISTAC was found in December 2012 with the support of the Academy of Korean Studies and the Korean Studies Promotion Service with the aim of publishing a collection composed of 30 Korean books and 7 English books on Korean science and civilization.
By November 2013, the HISTAC research team submitted a research paper composed of 11 Korean and 1 English book. It has now exceeded its initial goal of publishing 7 English books by signing the recent agreement with the Cambridge University Press.
“Science and Civilization in Korea” is the second collection of non-western science to be published by the Cambridge University Press since 1954 following “Science and Civilization in China” by Joseph Needham who is well-known for his momentous achievements in history of science in East Asia. This collection will highlight the achievements of Korea in science and civilization of Korea, much of which has been under-valued compared to those of China and Japan.[ It now has the significance similar to the Western science and civilization].
HISTAC appointed Professor Hong-Gi Yoon from the University of Auckland as the translator and invited Professor Christopher Cullen from Cambridge University and Professor Morris Low from the University of Queensland as co-editors. Professor Cullen was an editor of “Science and Civilization in China” and is now the director of the Needham Research Institute and Professor Low is an expert in modern science of East Asia.
The series includes:
- History of Science and Technology in Korea
- Technology, Everyday Life, and Korean Civilization
- History and Cultural Studies of Geomancy in Korea
- Patients, Doctors and the State: History of Korean Medical and Pharmaceutical Culture
- History of Astronomy in Korea
- Mathematics and the History of Korean Civilization
- The West and Korea in the History of Science and Technology, 1600-1950
- Imperialism, Colonialism, Post-colonialism and Technological Science in Korea
- Development of Science and Technology Under the Korean Authoritarian Regime
- Dynamics of Technological Development in Korean Industrialization
The HISTAC team believes that the publication will illuminate the nation’s triumphs in science and technology and expects that the publication will serve as valuable research resources for the study of the history of East Asian scientific civilization which has mainly focused on China and Japan. Further, by adopting various case studies of scientific achievements of South Korea and developing countries, they hope to propose a new model for studying history of science and civilization.
2013.11.28 View 8168 -
The key to Alzheimer disease, PET-MRI made in Korea
Professor Kyu-Sung Cho
- Simultaneous PET-MRI imaging system commercialization technology developed purely from domestic technology - - Inspiring achievement by KAIST, National NanoFab Center, Sogang University, Seoul National University Hospital –
Hopes are high for the potential of producing domestic products in the field of state-of-the-art medical imaging equipment that used to rely on imported products.
The joint research team (KAIST, Sogang University and Seoul National University) with KAIST Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering Professor Kyu-Sung Cho in charge, together with National Nanofab Institution (NNFC; Director Jae-Young Lee), has developed PET-MRI simultaneous imaging system with domestic technology only. The team successfully acquired brain images of 3 volunteers with the newly developed system.
PET-MRI is integrated state-of-the-art medical imaging equipment that combines the advantages of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) that shows anatomical images of the body and Position Emission Tomography (PET) that analyses cell activity and metabolism. Since the anatomical information and functional information can be seen simultaneously, the device can be used to diagnose early onset Alzheimer’s disease and is essential in biological science research, such as new medicine development.
The existing equipment used to take MRI and PET images separately due to the strong magnetic field generated by MRI and combine the images. Hence, it was time consuming and error-prone due to patient’s movement. There was a need to develop PET that functions within a magnetic field to create a simultaneous imaging system.
The newly developed integral PET-MRI has 3 technical characteristics: 1. PET detector without magnetic interference, 2. PET-MRI integration system, 3.PET-MRI imaging processing.
The PET detector is the most important factor and accounts for half the cost of the whole system. KAIST Professor Cho and NNFC Doctor Woo-Suk Seol’s team successfully developed the Silicon Photomultiplier (amplifies light coming into the radiation detector) that can be used in strong magnetic fields. The developed sensor has a global competitive edge since it optimises semiconductor processing to yield over 95% productivity and around 10% gamma radiation energy resolving power.
Sogang University Department and Electrical Engineering Professor Yong Choi developed cutting edge PET system using a new concept of electric charge signal transmission method and imaging location distinction circuit. The creativity and excellence of the research findings were recognised and hence published on the cover of Medical Physics in June.
Seoul National University Hospital Department of Nuclear Medicine Professor Jae-Sung Lee developed the Silicon Photomultiplier sensor based PET imaging reconstitution programme, MRI imaging based PET imaging revision technology and PET-MRI imaging integration software.
Furthermore, KAIST Department of Electrical Engineering Professor Hyun-Wook Park was responsible for the development of RF Shielding technology that enables simultaneous installation of PET and MRI and using this technology, he developed a head coil for the brain that can be connected to PET for installation.
Based on the technology describe above, the joint research team successfully developed PET-MRI system for brains and acquired PET-MRI integrated brain images from 3 volunteers last June.
In particular, this system has the distinct feature of a detachable PET module and MRI head coil to the existing whole body MRI, so that PET-MRI simultaneous imaging is possible with low installation cost.
Professor Cho said, “We have prepared the foundation of domestic commercial PET and the system has a competitive edge in the global market of PET-MRI system technology.” He continued, “It can reduce the cost of the increasing brain related disease diagnosis, including Alzheimer’s, dramatically.”
Funded by Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy as an Industrial Foundation Technology Development Project (98 billion won in 7 years), the research applied for over 20 patents and 20 CSI theses.
Figure 1.Brain phantom images from developed PET-MRI system
Figure 2. Brain images from developed PET-MRI system
Figure 3. Domestic PET-MRI clinical trial
Figure 4. Head RF coil and PET detector inserted in MRI
Figure 5. Insertion type PET detector module
Figure 6. Silicon Photomultiplier sensor (Left) and flash crystal block (right)
Figure7. Silicon Photomultiplier sensor
Figure 8. PET detection principle
2013.11.28 View 12452 -
Green Technology for Data Centers: Ultra-low Power 100 Gbps Ethernet Integrated Circuit Developed
A new integrated circuit (IC), consuming only 0.75W of electricity, will reduce the power usage of data chips installed at data centers by one-third.
Each day, billions of people surf the Internet for information, entertainment, and educational content. The Internet contains an immeasurable amount of information and knowledge generated every minute all around the world that is readily available to everyone with a click of a computer mouse. The real magic of the Internet, however, lies in data centers, where hundreds of billions of data are stored and distributed to designated users around the clock.
Today, almost every business or organization either has its own data centers or outsources data center services to a third party. These centers house highly specialized equipment responsible for the support of computers, networks, data storage, and business security. Accordingly, the operational cost of data centers is tremendous because they consume a large amount of electricity.
Data centers can consume up to 100 times more energy than a standard office building. Data center energy consumption doubled from 2000 to 2006, reaching more than 60 billion kilowatt hours per year. If the current usage and technology trends continue, the energy consumption of data centers in the US will reach 8% of the country’s total electric power consumption by 2020.
A research team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Terasquare, Inc. (
http://www.terasquare.co.kr
), a spin-off company of the university,
developed an extremely low-powered integrated circuit for Ethernet that consumes less than 0.75W of electricity but is able to send and receive data at the high speed of 100 gigabits per second (Gbps). The research team, headed by Hyeon-Min Bae, assistant professor of electrical engineering at KAIST, claims that the new microchip uses only one-third of the electricity consumed by the currently installed chips at data centers, thereby helping the centers to save energy.
Integrated circuits are embedded on communication modules that are inserted into a line card. Data centers have numerous line cards to build a network including routers and switches. Currently, 8W ICs are the most common in the market, and they consume a lot of energy and require the largest modules (112 cm
2
of CFP), decreasing the port density of line cards and, thus, limiting the amount of data transmission.
The ultra-low-power-circuit, 100-gigabit, full-transceiver CDR, is the world’s first solution that can be loaded to the smallest communication modules (20 cm
2
of CFP4 or 16 cm
2
of
QSFP28), the next-generation chips for data centers. Compared with other chip producers, the 100 Gbps CDR is a greener version of the technology that improves the energy efficiency of data centers while maintaining the high speed of data transmission.
Professor Hyeon-Min Bae said, “When we demonstrate our chip in September of this year at one of the leading companies that manufacture optical communication components and systems, they said that our product is two years ahead of those of our competitors. We plan to produce the chip from 2014 and expect that it will lead the 100 Gbps Ethernet IC market, which is expected to grow to USD 1 billion by 2017.”
The commercial model of the IC was first introduced at the 39
th
European Conference and Exhibition on Optical Communication (ECOC), the largest optical communication forum for new results and developments in Europe, held from September 22-26 at ExCeL London, an international exhibition and convention center.
Professor Bae added, “We received positive responses to our ultra-low-power 100-Gbps Ethernet IC at the ECOC. The chip will be used not only for a particular industry but also for many of next-generation, super-high-speed information communications technologies, such as high-speed USB, high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI), and TV interface.”
Before joining KAIST, Hyeon-Min Bae worked for many years at Finisar as a researcher who designed and developed the world’s first super-high-speed circuit, the 100 Gbps Ethernet IC.
2013.11.25 View 8498 -
Technology Developed for Flexible, Foldable & Rechargeable Battery
Flexible, Foldable & Rechargeable Battery
The research group of professors Jang-Wook Choi & Jung-Yong Lee from the Graduate School of EEWS and Taek-Soo Kim from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at KAIST has developed technology for flexible and foldable batteries which are rechargeable using solar energy. The research result was published in the online issue of Nano Letters on November 5.
Trial versions of flexible and wearable electronics are being developed and introduced in the market such as Galaxy Gear, Apple’s i-Watch, and Google Glass. Research is being conducted to make the batteries softer and more wearable and to compete in the fast-growing market for flexible electronics.
This new technology is expected to be applied to the development of wearable computers as well as winter outdoor clothing since it is flexible and light. The research group expects that the new technology can be applied to current battery production lines without additional investment.
Professor Choi said, “It can be used as a core-source technology in the rechargeable battery industry in the future. Various wearable mobile electronic products can be developed through cooperation and collaboration within the industry.”
2013.11.21 View 10449 -
President of WIPA Sang-Hui Lee and SK Hynix Awarded the 2013 Intellectual Property Award
The ceremony for the 3rd Intellectual Property Award was held at the KAIST campus in Seoul on November 2nd. The award is given annually to Korean practitioners in intellectual property.
This year’s recipients were Sang-Hui Lee, the president of the World Intellectual Property Association of Korean Practitioners (WIPA) and the SK Hynix Patent Group which successfully defended a long-lasting claim against a patent specialist corporation.
The Intellectual Property Award (IP Award) is presented in recognition to Korean individuals or groups that contributed to national competitiveness through creation, application, or proceedings of intellectual property, as well as to building the foundation for the protection of patents, intellectual properties, and trademarks.
President Lee successfully hosted the Global Intellectual Property Summit in Seoul, which was held in October 2012. He was a crucial force behind the foundation of WIPA in May of this year and was also elected as the first president for the organization. Recently, President Lee has been at the forefront of job creation through the efficient use of intellectual property and the creative discovery of venture endeavors.
President Lee said, “The unique characteristic of a knowledge-based society lies in the collaboration network of people and knowledge property, startups based on intellectual property, and decentralized development.”
He added, “Just as Finland adopted a policy to build venture companies in utilization of intellectual properties and encouraged the decentralized growth throughout the nation after the collapse of Nokia, Korea must adapt to meet the changing requirements of the knowledge-intensive era.”
The SK Hynix Patent Group, another recipient for the Intellectual Property Award, won the lawsuit, dragged on for 13 years, against the Rambus, an American patent specialized corporation. The group initially lost the first trial in the federal court of California, but through relentless research and efforts, they won the case in the appeals court. The IP Award was co-hosted by the Korea Patent Attorney Association, the Korea Intellectual Property and Service Association, and KAIST.
2013.11.21 View 8325 -
One Day Idea Hackathon, GoGeeks 2013
GoGeeks Creation Group, founded by KAIST alumni, is hosting the GoGeeks One Day Idea Hackathon 2013 on November 23 at the Microsoft (MS) Building in Seoul. The contest was organized to support creative ideas proposed by college students and help them to be applied in real life.
The first GoGeeks contest was held last year by a group of KAIST undergraduate students, which was influenced by Duke University’s Elevator Pitch Competition, an entrepreneurial competition started in 1999.
Applications for the contest should be submitted on www.gogeeks.co.kr by November 20, and the first 30 groups registered will get to compete in the contest.
Each group will make one-minute presentations after six hours of planning on the theme of “Color Your Society.” Then five-minute presentations will follow by the top ten groups selected from the first stage. The top five groups will be each awarded the prize of 2 million Korean won.
The five selected teams will work on their proposed projects during the winter vacation with support from MS Korea and the Center for Science-based Entrepreneurship at KAIST.
Fundraising for the event is going on at http://tumblbug.com/gogeeks2013.
2013.11.21 View 6962 -
Exhibition of High Technology Held by the Graduate School of Culture Technology at KAIST
Screen X technology, displaying objects simutaneously on three screens
The Graduate School of Culture Technology at KAIST hosted the “2013 Demo Day” on the 1st of November.
The purpose of the Demo Day was to introduce recent research accomplishments on culture technology (CT) to the public and discuss the direction of the future trend of CT.The technologies introduced at the exhibition were: Screen X which simultaneously uses three screens, MagGetz which uses magnets for smart phone applications, Space Touch which connects the virtual reality with the real world, and Avatar that recognizes augmented objects using augmented reality.
Research papers entitled “Digital Art and Entertainment” (Professor Sung-Hee Lee), “Social Network” (Professor Mi-Young Cha), and “Interactive Media and Space” (Professor Ji-Hyun Lee) were presented as well. The Graduate School of Culture Technology was founded in 2005 to combine digital media and culture. Research is conducted largely in the fields of digital art & entertainment, ambient communication, and interactive media & space.
2013.11.20 View 6114 -
Visit by the President of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, US
A delegation from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) in the United States visited KAIST on November 11, 2013.
The delegation consisted of senior administrators from the university, the president, vice president for research, dean of engineering college, dean of nursing college, and associate chancellor for corporate and international relations. The managing director of the State of Illinois Far East Office also joined the delegation.
They met with President Steve Kang, including vice presidents and deans of KAIST, and discussed forming a possible partnership between KAIST and UIUC.
Robert A. Easter, the president of UIUC, said, “Higher education institutions today are bearing a critical responsibility to increase the awareness, knowledge, skills, and values needed to create a sustainable future. I hope KAIST and the University of Illinois will join forces to lead innovation in higher education and to stay connected and relevant in a global marketplace.”
President Steve Kang responded, “There would be many opportunities for the two universities to collaborate and achieve global preeminence in such field as biotechnology, engineering, and convergence research.”
The University of Illinois, with three distinct campuses in Chicago, Springfield, and Urbana-Champaign, is one of the most prestigious universities in the world. The university has an annual operating budget of more than USD 5 billion, collectively enrolls more than 78,000 students, awards nearly 20,000 degrees each year, and has more than 665,000 alumni around the world.
2013.11.18 View 7241 -
Final Results of the 2013 Intelligent SoC Robot War
KAIST hosted the 2013 Intelligent System on Chip (SoC) Robot War, the largest intelligent robot contest in Korea, from Oct. 24 to 27 at KINTEX in Ilsan, Korea.
Professor Hoi-Jun Yoo, from the Department of Electrical Engineering at KAIST, started the contest in 2003 to promote Taekwondo, a Korean martial art, and Korean semiconductor technology to the world.
The winning team was awarded an honorary certificate from Kookiwon, the world headquarters of Taekwondo.
Competitions were held in two different categories: Taekwon Robot and Huro Competition.
In the Taekwon Robot contest, intelligent robots loaded with cameras and semiconductor chips competed in Taekwondo skills.
In the Huro Competition, intelligent humanoid robots competed in detecting and passing huddles.
Approximately 550 participants from 107 groups applied for the 12th Intelligent SoC Robot War and 22 groups were selected for the final tournament. The best teams in each category received an award from the president and prime minister of the Republic of Korea, respectively.
Professor Yoo, the operating chair of the contest, said, “The contest was organized to introduce both technology and tradition by presenting robots with Taekwondo skills. The experiences from this contest could be the foundation for future robot technology and the growth engine for the next generation.”
Professor Yoo is a leading researcher in the field of object recognition chip, and his papers were often presented at the International Solid State Circuits Conference.Details of the contest can be found at http://www.socrobotwar.org.
2013.11.15 View 8264