Minister Park Young-sun: "Now Is the Time for a Shift in Perspective" (Comprehensive)

Ministry of SMEs and Startups' New Year Plan Brewed into Robot-Made Coffee

On the 3rd, Park Young-sun, Minister of SMEs and Startups, is experiencing a robot barista at Regular Six Lounge X in Gangnam N Tower, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] At the cafe 'Lounge X' located on Teheran-ro in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, the hand holding the hand-drip kettle to make the coffee ordered by Park Young-sun, Minister of SMEs and Startups, began to move. However, the one holding the kettle was not a person. A robot barista started the delicate hand drip, where the amount, direction, and speed of pouring water vary depending on the type of coffee beans. While Minister Park was admiring, the robot barista flawlessly completed the coffee extraction process, and soon a fragrant coffee aroma began to spread softly. This coffee was delivered to the seat where Minister Park was sitting through unmanned robot serving along with cookies. This was the scene of the first executive meeting of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (hereafter, the Ministry) held on the morning of the 3rd.

The Ministry held the executive meeting at the smart store 'Lounge X' to announce its determination to achieve a 'Smart Korea' this year both internally and externally. Lounge X is a future-oriented restaurant that integrates information and communication technology (ICT), including a robot barista and unmanned robot serving, operated by the food tech startup Yukwol. The robot technology used for serving here was provided by Bear Robotics, which won the 'K-Startup Grand Challenge' competition hosted by the Ministry in 2017. After personally experiencing the robot barista and robot serving, Minister Park said, "Last year, we saw well how great power can be exerted when small things are connected," adding, "Now we have reached a point where a shift in perspective is needed based on connected power."

Then Minister Park emphasized, "The great transition to a digital economy has already begun. We must shift our perspective on the economy. Smart factories for SMEs, smart stores for small business owners, and smart services led by venture companies and startups cannot achieve results without a 'shift in perspective' that breaks away from conventional thinking.

Minister Park continued, "In the rapidly changing economic environment, the Ministry must change itself more and produce results based on the power of connected small things so that our SMEs, venture companies, and small business owners can adapt," presenting the Ministry's policy vision for 2020. ▲Expansion of smart factories, introduction of smart services, and smart stores ▲Strengthening small business owners' response capabilities to environmental changes such as online shopping ▲Acceleration of inclusive growth through the spread of voluntary win-win cooperation companies ▲Bold regulatory innovation led by regulatory free zones ▲Entry into the world's top four venture powerhouses through the launch of the K-Unicorn Project.

The core among these is to promote the expansion of smart factories, introduction of smart services, and smart stores to realize a smart Korea centered on SMEs, startups, venture companies, and small business owners. Cha Jung-hoon, Director of Startup Venture Innovation at the Ministry, announced plans to distribute 30,000 smart factories by 2022 and focus on advancing smart factories based on data, 5G, and artificial intelligence (AI). Additionally, by introducing smart services, they plan to support notifying and improving product issues and timing for parts replacement in advance based on the Internet of Things (IoT), AI, and big data analysis. They also plan to establish smart stores incorporating 4th Industrial Revolution technologies such as smart orders, smart mirrors, and smart maps in 20 pilot shopping districts.

On this day, Minister Park and the Ministry's department heads agreed that without smart sales methods and management utilizing ICT technology, survival in the 4th Industrial Revolution era is impossible, and they announced plans to sequentially visit the sites of smart factories and smart services, which are the core of Smart Korea, in the near future.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.