Ajou University participated in CES 2024, the largest IT and appliance expo in the world, achieving a milestone in industry-academia cooperation on the global stage.

Student and faculty entrepreneurs from Ajou University took part in CES 2024 in Las Vegas, United States, from January 9 to 12, where they showcased new technology. They were accompanied by 12 Ajou student “shadowers.” The international activity was made possible by support lent through Ajou University’s Global Future Innovation Technology Project, executed as part of the Korean government’s Leaders in Industry-university Cooperation (LINC) 3.0 Project.

At CES 2024 Ajou University ran six booths, two of which also conducted investor relations activities. The booths housed AIPS, a student startup, Re-Knet, a startup by a professor, Davinch Q and Cobosys, subsidiaries of Ajou University’s technology holding company, and InBic and SyncLink, family companies of Ajou University. InBic and AIPS were the two companies that engaged in investor relations activities at CES 2024. A major achievement by the Ajou University contingent was the conclusion of an export contract valued at KRW 4 billion. 

Student startup AIPS (top image) is a deep tech company which develops advanced hardware and software. Cho Young-min, a mechanical engineering student, is one of the CEOs of AIPS, formed in August and now run by a team of five. Neural processing unit (NPU) solutions related to semiconductors and software used in the cloud, autonomous driving, robots, and other intelligent technologies are some of its development focuses. The product AIPS brought to CES 2024 was Skynet, an affordable solution for AI service acceleration. 

Re-Knet, founded by Ko Young-bae, a professor of software and computer engineering at Ajou University, develops positioning and navigation services using ultra-wideband technology. To CES 2024 Re-Knet brought Handy UB, a precision indoor tracking service designed for the safety of persons with disabilities, and Navi Neck, a pet wellbeing app which uses augmented reality technology to track location, manage health, and analyze pet behavior. 

Davinch Q, a subsidiary of Ajou University’s technology holding company, has since its establishment made progress using patents held by Ajou University. To CES 2024 the company brought Onesec, a western imaging system for protein detection to compete with western blot protein detection systems in their respective market. Davinch Q is only the second in the world to have developed the technology used by Onesec, which engages in precision measurements without signal strength distortion and is more competitively priced than the western blot protein detection system, an advantage which warrants the production of a protein detection system in Korea.

Cobosys, another subsidiary of Ajou University’s technology holding company, develops robot automation solutions and was founded in 2019 by Park Jaeil, an industrial engineering professor at Ajou University, and his business partner, Dr. Jang Kyung-hoon. At CES 2024, Cobosys introduced a smart farming robot it had jointly developed with the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology. Cobosys manufactures a range of robot-based automation solutions, among them a “coffeebot” and “chickenbot” designed for automation of the food and beverage industry. At CES 2024 Cobosys concluded an export contract with US company Flamingo Robot, which will involve Cobosys supplying 100 coffeebots, worth around KRW 4 billion. 

InBic and SyncLink, both family companies of Ajou University, introduced a real-time AI nighttime image conversion solution and a ring-type wireless mouse with healthcare features ("Smart Ring"), respectively, at CES 2024.

The Ajou University delegation to CES 2024 was accompanied by 12 Ajou University students who are aspiring entrepreneurs themselves. These student shadowers made it to CES 2024 with support from Ajou University, and then spent time visiting Stanford University and a number of other institutes of higher learning, as well as Silicon Valley companies.

Together with Suwon City, Ajou University hosted a conference on supporting startups to coincide with CES 2024. The conference took place on the 9th and was attended by Ajou University and Suwon City officials, among them Ajou University President Choi Kee-choo and Suwon Mayor Lee Jae-Joon, students interested in startups, and startup CEOs who engaged in in-depth discussions of how the university and local community can work together to create unicorns.

Kim Sangin, chief of the Ajou University Industry-Academia Cooperation Foundation and who also helms the university’s task force for the LINC 3.0 Project, commented, “This is Ajou University’s third participation in CES, which has given us experience in initiating global business-university cooperation […] Ajou University will work with partners in the region to help its members enter foreign markets with their achievements in innovation.” 

Ajou University student shadowers

Cobosys CEOs with their KRW 4B contract for coffeebot export

An InBic representative explaining the company’s real-time AI nighttime image conversion technology

Ajou University President Choi Kee-choo speaking at the conference on fostering startups by Ajou University and Suwon City

Post-conference group photo