KAIST successfully hosted the 2023 KAIST Tech Fair in New York at the New York University’s Kimmel Center on September 22. This event aimed to propagate the KAIST startup ecosystem worldwide and validate the technological prowess of startup companies for attracting investments and securing global clients.
KAIST has been organizing tech fairs domestically since 2018, but this year marked the debut of a tech fair targeting international audiences. In preparation for this event, the KAIST Institute of Technology Value Creation, led by Director Sung-Yool Choi, collaborated with the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) over the past six months. They selected seven commercial technology startups founded by faculty and students and established connections with multinational corporations in information technology, artificial intelligence, environmental, logistics, distribution, and retail sectors. These corporations then evaluated the market viability of these startup technologies.
One of the featured startups was Daim Research, founded by Professor Young Jae Jang from the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. Daim Research specializes in smart factory automation solutions, utilizing collaborative intelligence to maximize production efficiency.
The tech fair also featured Aniai, which developed an automated burger patty cooking equipment; The Wave Talk, which developed a water quality management system for measuring external substances and metal ions; Virnect, which enhanced industrial site management through extended reality (XR) technology; Datumo, which provided a solution for processing and analyzing artificial intelligence big data; VESSL AI, which eliminated overhead in machine learning systems; and Dolbom-Dream, creators of an air-inflated vest to promote psychological stability for individuals with developmental disabilities.
In addition to these selected startups, two startups that participated in the D-Unicorn program supported by the Daejeon city government (Plasmapp and Nota AI), two startups supported by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' Scale-up Tips (ENJET and ILIAS Biologics), and three startups that are realizing sustainable development goals (Wi Power One, IDK Lab, and Artificial Photosynthesis Lab) also participated in the tech fair. A total of 14 KAIST startups held corporate presentations for over 100 global industry representatives and venture capitalists.
Prior to the event, participating startups visited the New York Economic Development Corporation and prominent law firms for consultations on US government support programs and market entry strategies. They also made stops at venture capital institutions that supported sustainable development goals and Leslie eLab, New York University's entrepreneurship support center, as part of their efforts to lay the foundation for KAIST's global technology commercialization.
Director Choi expressed his vision, stating, "KAIST had prepared for this event to realize its vision as a leading global value creation university. We hoped that startups founded on KAIST's technology would successfully conclude market validation and achieve success in attracting global demand and investments."