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Lee Gyu-lee

Korea Times Business Reporter

Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.

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Tech & Science

Hyundai Steel accelerates smart manufacturing with robots

Hyundai Steel is accelerating the smart transformation of its production lines by deploying robots in the inspection and packaging stages of wire rod processing. In November, the company became the first in Korea to introduce and operate an automated wire rod tagging robot at its specialty plant in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province. The robot automatically attaches tags containing product history, specifications and other key information on the coil shipping line. Hyundai Steel has been moving toward unmanned and automated shipping operations to minimize errors — such as steel grade mix-ups caused by incorrect tagging — and to improve workplace safety, introducing robots as part of that effort. The wire rod tagging robot system consists of an assembly robot, an attachment robot and supporting equipment such as conveyors, coil fixtures and safety fences. The assembly robot attaches clips to printed product tags. When wire rods are placed on fixtures along the conveyor, the attachment robot scans the product, identifies the correct attachment point and automatically affixes the tag.

Dec 17, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Hyundai Steel accelerates smart manufacturing with robots
Tech & Science

KT names Park Yoon-young as CEO candidate

KT, a major telecom operator, nominated former executive Park Yoon-young as its CEO candidate on Tuesday. The company’s board nomination committee said it reached the decision after conducting in-depth interviews with three finalists, including Joo Hyung-chul, a former presidential economic adviser and former SK Communications CEO, and Hong Won-pyo, a former chief of SK Shieldus. The nominees were evaluated based on criteria set by the board, with a focus on enhancing corporate value, restoring internal and external trust, fostering a cooperative management environment and presenting a clear management vision and direction for change and innovation to underpin the company’s sustainable growth. Park will officially assume the CEO role following approval at a regular shareholders’ meeting scheduled for March next year. “(Park) is a figure who has delivered tangible results in the digital transformation and business-to-business segments, backed by extensive experience in KT’s businesses and strong technology-driven management capabilities,” the board said. Park joined Korea Telec

Dec 16, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
KT names Park Yoon-young as CEO candidate
Companies

PHOTO SK Group makes year-end donation of $13.6 mil.

SK Supex Council Social Value Committee President Jee Dong-seob, left, and Community Chest of Korea Chairman Kim Byong-joon pose after SK Group delivered its donation at the charity’s headquarters in Seoul, Tuesday. SK Group made a 20 billion won ($13.6 million) year-end donation to the community support fundraising campaign, which it has contributed to annually since 1999. Employees of SK affiliates also voluntarily raised an additional 6 billion won, bringing this year's total donation to about 26 billion won. Courtesy of SK Group

Dec 16, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
[PHOTO] SK Group makes year-end donation of $13.6 mil.
Companies

Musinsa to merge brand subsidiary to strengthen core business

Fashion and retail platform Musinsa is restructuring its brand operations as part of a broader strategy to strengthen the competitiveness of its fast-growing brand business. The company announced on Tuesday that it plans a parent-subsidiary merger with Musinsa Trading, a subsidiary that oversees its brand business. The merger is aimed at reinforcing Musinsa’s brand operations as a core growth pillar alongside its platform business. By integrating organizational structures and operational resources, the company plans to enhance efficiency, unlock sales synergies and establish a more sustainable and efficient growth framework for its expanding portfolio of brands. “Musinsa’s brand business has been growing rapidly and has become one of our most important growth engines,” the company’s official said in a press release. “This merger with Musinsa Trading is a strategic step to further enhance our brand competitiveness and strengthen the foundation for sustainable and long-term growth.” Musinsa Trading has served as the company’s dedicated brand business arm, introducing and dis

Dec 16, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Musinsa to merge brand subsidiary to strengthen core business
Tech & Science

AI Strategy Council unveils 3-pillar action plan for global leadership

Presidential Council on National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategy unveiled a three-pillar action plan, Monday, to fast-track the country’s rise as a global AI powerhouse, focusing on building an innovation ecosystem, driving nationwide AI transformation and contributing to a global AI society. The council announced the road map during a press event at its office in central Seoul to celebrate the 100th day since its launch in September. “Since the deep learning breakthrough in 2012, Korea’s limited early investment has resulted in significant technological debt. The nation must now replace outdated systems and infrastructure while overhauling legal frameworks,” the council's Vice Chair Im Moon-young said. “Accelerated efforts are needed in core technology development, AI semiconductors, data centers, regulatory reform, industrial support and education system innovation to nurture AI talent and advance an AI‑based society." He explained that the action outlines step‑by‑step tasks for each ministry to conduct to prepare for the AI-driven transformation, with a total of

Dec 15, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
AI Strategy Council unveils 3-pillar action plan for global leadership
Tech & Science

Naver’s AI-powered search surpasses 20% milestone

Naver’s artificial intelligence (AI)-powered search service, AI Briefing, is rapidly emerging as a core part of the company’s search experience, with its share of total searches recently surpassing the 20 percent mark. The portal giant shared on Monday that AI Briefing surpassed 20 percent of total searches as of Thursday, achieving the year-end target pledged by CEO Choi Soo-yeon. “Search queries that include AI Briefing show a higher click-through rate by 8 percentage points, and users spend more than 20 percent longer on those pages,” Choi said during the company’s second-quarter earnings call in August. “We are expanding AI Briefing primarily for information-focused searches, and plan to roll it out to cover 20 percent of all integrated search queries by the end of the year.” Naver attributed the growth to the service’s ability to distill large volumes of experience-based information into concise and highly relevant summaries at the top of search results, which drew positive response from users. Since rolling out the service in June, the company has quickly extended AI

Dec 15, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Naver’s AI-powered search surpasses 20% milestone
Tech & Science

Netflix’s Warner Bros. takeover bid raises alarms over deepening crisis in Korea’s content ecosystem

Netflix’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has sent shockwaves across the global entertainment business, with Korea’s already fragile, Netflix-dominated streaming service ecosystem bracing for a possible major shift in streaming power dynamics. The streaming giant announced earlier this month that it plans to acquire WBD’s studio and streaming businesses for about $72 billion, giving Netflix control of some of the most powerful franchises. The possible acquisition would include Warner Bros. films and TV studios, HBO and streaming platform Max, signaling a structural shift in who controls production, distribution and long‑term intellectual property. If completed, the acquisition would instantly strengthen Netflix’s already dominant position in Korea, where it holds about 40 percent of the local streaming market, far outpacing homegrown rivals such as Coupang Play, Tving and Wave. Adding global fandom-heavy titles such as “Harry Potter,” the “Game of Thrones” universe and the DC franchise, including “Batman” and “Superman,” would make this domi

Dec 13, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Netflix’s Warner Bros. takeover bid raises alarms over deepening crisis in Korea’s content ecosystem
Companies

Lotte P&D expands support for single-parent families

Lotte Property & Development (Lotte P&D) is rolling out its corporate social responsibility initiative, Happy Box, to support 100 single-parent families raising infants and toddlers in Seoul. Since launching the program in 2017, the company has supported a total of 1,000 households to date. The year-end initiative has primarily focused on low-income single-person households in Songpa District until now. This year, Lotte expanded the program to include families with young children across Seoul, emphasizing more hands-on child care support and increased employee participation. “The Happy Box project is especially meaningful because our employees make the items themselves with care,” said Kim Hyuk-shin, head of Lotte P&D’s creating shared value team. “Going forward, we will keep working to expand a culture of sharing for the sustainable growth of our local communities.” This year’s Happy Box includes infant-care items such as ear thermometers, blankets, baby snacks and diaper pouches, along with basic skin care products for parents. About 100 employees volunteered to hand-make t

Dec 12, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Lotte P&D expands support for single-parent families
Companies

Google Korea names new managing director

Google Korea announced Friday that it has appointed Yoon Goo as its new country managing director, with him set to begin overseeing the company’s advertising sales operations starting Jan. 5. He is a technology management expert with more than 20 years of experience at leading global companies including Apple, Samsung Electronics and Microsoft, where he drove digital transformation and sustainable growth. The company said it expects his extensive experience and leadership to play a key role in accelerating Google Korea’s growth. Yoon said his mission is to ensure Google is a true partner in Korea's success. “We will aggressively leverage the momentum of Gemini and AI to democratize growth, foster innovation, and empower our strategic customers spanning global conglomerates, SMBs, and start-ups to achieve their greatest ambitions,” he said on his social network platform. “I am eager to start by listening, learning, and collaborating with our talented colleagues and valued partners. Let's build an even brighter future together!” Yoon earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from t

Dec 12, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Google Korea names new managing director
Companies

KHNP deepens Czech cooperation for Dukovany nuclear project

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) has been stepping up technical exchanges with the Czech Republic on its nuclear power project after securing a contract in June to build a nuclear power plant in the city of Dukovany. A delegation from Elektrarna Dukovany II (EDU II), the Czech state-run company in charge of the project, visited Korea from Dec. 1 through Thursday for an extensive technical exchange program. During their trip, they held meetings on design procedures, observed key design processes and took part in a specialized training program for the project. A total of 53 EDU II officials participated, including Zbynek Mrazek, general manager of the new Dukovany project. “During this visit, the Czech delegation and KHNP strengthened mutual trust and laid meaningful groundwork for expanding technical cooperation,” said Park In-sik, head of KHNP’s export business division. “We will continue to provide all necessary technical support and exchanges to ensure the project proceeds without delay.” On Dec. 1 and 2, the delegation visited the headquarters of Korea Electric Power Corp.

Dec 11, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
KHNP deepens Czech cooperation for Dukovany nuclear project
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