AITech Wins WIPO Global Award First for a Korean Company

The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) (Commissioner Kim Wan-ki) announced that the startup AITech has become the first Korean company to receive the main award at the 3rd WIPO Global Awards ceremony held on July 12 at 12 PM (local time) at WIPO headquarters in Geneva Switzerland.

WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) is one of the 15 specialized agencies under the United Nations overseeing global intellectual property matters.
The WIPO Global Awards initiated in 2022 recognize small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and startups that utilize intellectual property (IP) to contribute to economic social and cultural development. This year the 3rd edition saw 667 companies from 107 countries apply with AITech among the nine companies from nine countries* to receive the main award.

South Korea China Singapore Thailand Switzerland Kenya Kuwait Argentina Turkey (Attachment 2)
Award-winning companies receive tailored mentoring for 6-12 weeks on IP business aspects such as funding and partnerships international promotion through the WIPO platform participation in the WIPO network for IP strategy consultation and an invitation to the Global Awards ceremony.

Founded in 2020 AITech (CEO Park Tae-hyung) has developed AI-based waste sorting robots used in both private and public recycling facilities achieving remarkable growth with sales reaching approximately 2.3 billion KRW in 2023. AITech has built a strong patent portfolio (10 registered domestic patents 7 PCT applications) with support from KIPOs IP-R&D* program in 2021 and 2023 and secured R&D funds and IP financing through the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ TIPS program effectively overcoming the initial challenges faced by startups.

IP-R&D refers to integrating IP strategies throughout the entire R&D cycle from planning to commercialization to create strong IP.
An international panel of judges highlighted AITech’s patented business model and products for their contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Since the establishment of the Global Awards in 2022 two Korean companies reached the finals in both 2022 and 2023 but did not win. To encourage more Korean companies to apply KIPO has actively promoted the competition and worked closely with WIPO to ensure transparency and clear criteria in the selection process.

KIPO Commissioner Kim Wan-ki commented “AITech’s award demonstrates how the company has effectively protected its core technology through strategic IP management achieving significant results in the challenging AI and hardware integration field while also contributing to the UN SDGs. KIPO will continue to support our companies in winning such awards and expanding into the global market.”

Park Tae-hyung CEO of AITech expressed his gratitude saying “It is an honor to receive such a prestigious award at the global IP hub. I extend my deepest thanks to all AITech members and government officials who helped us reach this point. This award signifies a call to grow into a global company through IP and contribute to ‘sustainable development’ the shared goal of the international community. We will work even harder to lead the global market in AI-based waste sorting.”

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