The partners came to an agreement concerning the topic “Symbiotic Transformation for AI-infused Reality (STAR)“. According to Hankook, the cooperation will support setting up a platform for data infrastructure and is to strengthen joint research for the post-AI era. The “STAR“ project was created to initiate an open data platform based on the change towards a data-centred society. Hankook & Company and KAIST are both aware of the necessity of new added value in the area of data collection and analysis as well as the joint use of the results.
Joint Venture as foundation of the partnership
Within the framework of the partnership, Hankook & Company will support KAIST when preparing a virtual and a real-virtual symbiosis testing environment as well as with building a convergent data cloud sharing platform. “Hankook & Company would like to support this project by making full use of its digital capacities as systemic model of cooperation between industry and colleges being beneficial for both parties”, was said in the announcement.
Crucial subsidiaries belonging to Hankook & Company, among others Hankook Tire, are to carry out pilot programmes to support Smart Life, Smart Factory and Smart Mobility making use of the data-sharing platform. Hankook’s subsidiaries are aiming at cooperation possibilities in different areas. There will be, among others, real-time analysis of road traffic data in the environmental area and the use of real driving notes and data of traffic accidents, which have been collected in tyre research and development.
Hankook & Company and KAIST have been working together for some time. The partners founded a joint venture called HK-KAIST Digital Innovation Center in 2019 and have been strengthening research, development, and digital technology competence via digital transformation. This year in May, the two partners extended their agreement in order to continue running the centre and working on the joint study, which is supposed to contribute to future growth engines and technology-based innovation possibilities. “Hankook & Company and KAIST are an excellent example of a win-win model demonstrating cooperation between science and industry, which has benefited both parties”, explained Seyeol Ryu, Executive Director of the Digital Strategy Teams at Hankook & Company.
“When using data of an experimental testing platform within the Metaverse (convergence of virtual world and reality), the cooperation between industry and university will be accelerated for the development of new technologies. Thus, this will enable us to offer industrial training programmes on site aiming at the support of talents for the post-AI era. This is an excellent opportunity for the university researchers and the companies involved to reach the next stage and to expand their competences”, added Dongman Lee, Dean at KAIST College of Engineering.
