"Advancing Edutech through Data Openness"... Woongjin ThinkBig Declares Transformation into a Platform Company

'2022 Open Innovation Day' Held at Paju Headquarters on the 22nd
Platform Sharing and Technical Collaboration with External Content Companies
CEO Lee: "Providing the Best Learning Service Both Online and Offline"

Lee Jae-jin, CEO of Woongjin ThinkBig, is giving a presentation on the leap to a platform company at the '2022 Woongjin ThinkBig Open Innovation Day' held at the headquarters building in Paju Book City on the 22nd. Photo by Woongjin ThinkBig

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwak Min-jae] Woongjin ThinkBig has declared its transformation from a learning service provider to a platform company through open innovation. The strategy is to open the data accumulated through its 500,000-member service to tech partners and present advanced learning services and systems through joint technology research and development.

On the 22nd, Woongjin ThinkBig held the ‘2022 Woongjin ThinkBig Open Innovation Day’ at its headquarters in the Paju Publishing Complex.

Lee Jae-jin, CEO of Woongjin ThinkBig, who took the stage that day, said, “Since 2014, we have strongly promoted digital transformation (DX) and accumulated over 100 million data points daily. Especially, SmartAll, which leads the comprehensive learning materials market, has an overwhelming membership of 220,000. By supplying Woongjin ThinkBig’s data to Silicon Valley edutech companies like Kidaptive, it is possible to provide customized curriculum services that analyze children’s learning patterns and adjust difficulty levels based on AI technology.”

Woongjin ThinkBig plans to increase its role as a learning platform by actively utilizing external publisher content. CEO Lee mentioned examples of actively incorporating external content into its learning service platforms, such as Woongjin Book Club, Woongjin ThinkBig’s smart reading brand, and adding Daechi-dong academy lectures to the middle school online course ‘Woongjin SmartAll Middle School.’

Various open business models within the education category will also be expanded. These include ▲content partnerships (C.P.) providing Woongjin content to external study rooms and academies ▲franchising the Woongjin Prime learning centers previously operated only directly ▲opening the academy operation communication platform through the academy life platform Rallys ▲and operating Udemy, an online education open platform where anyone can become an instructor and participate.

They also announced the upcoming launch of ‘LiveAll,’ developed through technical collaboration with Gurumi, a company specializing in video and online lecture solutions. ‘LiveAll’ is a kids live class platform that newly integrates open video class solution technology based on the know-how of operating ‘Woongjin Together,’ the education industry’s first membership-based video class product (2015), and its existing membership of over 50,000. It is currently in the final stage of open beta testing ahead of its official release within the year.

They foresee ‘ARpedia (Interactive Book),’ which incorporates augmented reality (AR) technology, becoming a leading product that will open the era of interactive learning on desks. A version applying technology that recognizes fingers without markers (paper pointers) is also being prepared, with the goal of its first exhibition at the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany this October. It has already been recognized overseas for its product quality, winning awards such as the ‘2022 CES Innovation Award.’

CEO Lee stated, “Children’s education is very important not only for simple learning activities but also for managing and forming habits. We will provide the best learning services both online and offline by combining our existing strength in offline face-to-face management know-how with an online and technology-based interactive learning system.”

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