Four Cool Startups From Korea

The Forrest Four-Cast: October 12, 2016

I have been in Seoul the last few days as a speaker and a judge at StartupCon 2016. In addition to informative presentations from digital innovators and some amazing musical performances, I’ve viewed about a dozen pitches from Korean founders. These are four of the startups from these pitch sessions that I think have the most potential.

1. AKA. Pocket-sized robots are one of the coolest things about how technology is developing in Asia. A fun little humanoid called Musio X is AKA’s entry into this marketplace, promising an “amalgamation of AI communication techniques developed by AKA over the years.”
2. Cool Jamm. This young company’s signature app enables users to make professional-sounding music simply by humming their favorite song into their smartphone. Hum On’s focus on augmenting user creativity echoed one of the predominant themes at StartupCon 2016.
3. Gaudio Lab. While various players are focusing on the visual components of VR technology, few have paid a lot of attention to the audio portion of this experience. Enter Gaudio, which matches the intensity of sound to the location of the object producing that noise.
4. JamEasy. Currently designed for the violin, this small clip-on device uses analyzes sound vibrations to help the teaching process for young musicians. The company is now aiming to develop a similar hardware device for guitars — and eventually other instruments.

My experience in Korea this week has been incredible — great people, great energy and great weather. My only regret is not having more time to explore the city’s landmarks and local culture. I hope to return soon to Seoul to catch up on these aspects of the city — as well as to meet more forward-thinking geeks who are pushing this emerging entrepreneurial ecosystem.