Experts United to Develop 'Metaverse' Capital in Gyeongbuk!

First Launch of Metaverse Policy Advisory Group by Local Governments and Establishment of Corporate Alliance

Gyeongbuk Provincial Government Office.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] To establish Gyeongbuk as the "Metaverse Capital," Gyeongbuk Province and private metaverse experts have joined hands to mark a full-fledged start.

On the 24th, Gyeongsangbuk-do announced that it held the "Launch of the Metaverse Gyeongbuk Policy Advisory Group and Vision Declaration Ceremony for Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk" at the provincial government office, using a new digital method that fuses the metaverse and reality.

This is the first time a local government has launched a policy advisory group related to the metaverse and established a corporate alliance.

The declaration ceremony was attended by Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province; Ko Woo-hyun, Chairman of the Gyeongbuk Provincial Council; Choi Seong-gwang, Co-Chairman of the Public-Private Joint Metaverse Gyeongbuk Promotion Committee; as well as representatives from leading metaverse companies, startups, ICT-related companies, national research institutes related to the metaverse, and professors from universities in the metropolitan area and local regions.

Notably, representatives from global big tech companies leading the metaverse such as Google, Microsoft, Naver, and Amazon also attended, drawing attention.

The event proceeded in the metaverse space with the following sequence: ▷Introduction of virtual characters reflecting the physical appearance of policy advisory committee members ▷Presentation of the basic plan for achieving a population of 10 million in the metaverse capital by 2026 ▷Performance to leap forward as the "Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk" by building digital networks with major capitals worldwide in virtual space.

Gyeongbuk Province’s main character (Bonkae) was defined as Saebaram Happy Gyeongbuk, and the sub-character (Bukae) as Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk (Meta Gyeongbuk), providing a fun definition of metaverse Gyeongbuk.

The Metaverse Gyeongbuk Policy Advisory Group consists of about 40 experts including professors, researchers, and CEOs from the fields of industry, culture, tourism, education, and ICT.

The advisory group will serve as the brain for establishing Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk by planning and discovering metaverse strategic tasks, sharing industry and technology trends, and supporting research.

More than 50 companies from inside and outside the province also participated in the Metaverse Alliance.

The alliance is a public-private cooperation system for the development of the metaverse industrial ecosystem, operated mainly by metaverse and ICT companies, where companies lead metaverse projects and Gyeongbuk Province supports them.

Going forward, the alliance plans to expand participating companies and institutions and broaden its scope, while Gyeongbuk Province will prepare various support measures such as funding and fund formation based on the results proposed by the alliance.

Additionally, about 40 universities, including the Realistic Media Innovation Shared University Project Group, also participated in the Metaverse Gyeongbuk Policy Advisory Group and the alliance.

Choi Seong-gwang, in his 30s and Co-Chairman of the Public-Private Joint Metaverse Gyeongbuk Promotion Committee, is the CEO of VR Crew, a technology-based startup developing digital AR/VR content and core technologies. In 2019, he became the first individual to receive the Minister of Science and ICT Award at the Mobile Technology Awards hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT.

On the morning of the event, Chairman Choi gave a special lecture at the provincial office titled "Region-Based Metaverse and Its Utility," emphasizing, "It is most important for Gyeongbuk Province to be the first to implement and secure a lead in the digital twin-based metaverse that global companies are talking about."

Regarding this, Governor Lee Cheol-woo of Gyeongbuk Province stated, "In the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution, the metaverse will not be a temporary storm but a mission of the times. We will prepare faster than anyone else and lead the great transformation of local governments through the metaverse." He added, "We will promote creative and innovative metaverse projects centered on the newly launched policy advisory group and alliance to create a hopeful future where young people flock to 'Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk.'"

Earlier, on the 7th, Gyeongbuk Province announced 20 key tasks in four major areas under the goal of "Back to the Center of Korea! Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk," including ▷Metaverse talent cultivation ▷Metaverse industry promotion ▷Activation of metaverse culture and tourism ▷Creation of metaverse specialized service zones.

In the first half of the year, a National Assembly seminar for establishing Metaverse Capital Gyeongbuk was held, and in the second half, plans include a metaverse forum, idea contests, and developer competitions.

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