"University as a Corporation"... Dongseo University Link 3.0 Project Group Develops 'Industry-Academia Cooperation Brand'

"Universities are also businesses. We develop meta-technology content as a brand!"

The era of branding has also arrived for industry-academia cooperation projects. The LINC 3.0 Project Group at Dongseo University (President Jang Je-guk) has set sail to launch its own industry-academia cooperation brand, ‘Exit (XCCT)’.

To fully activate the brand, they have strengthened connections with specialized field Corporate Collaboration Centers (ICC), local governments, and related organizations, and have begun additional infrastructure development. The project group emphasized that they are accelerating the realization of an entrepreneurial university.

Dongseo University is launching the specialized field brand ‘Exit (XCCT)’ to achieve the vision of "Creating a leading model of industry-academia cooperation in the meta-technology-based cultural content field," and is systematically progressing with branding work based on this foundation.

Exit (XCCT) stands for ‘eXtended Contents, Culture and Technology.’ It represents the commitment to serve as the hub for nurturing talent, research and development, and commercialization in the cultural content field in the southeastern region.

Overview of the Establishment of the Industry-Academic Cooperation Brand Exit at Dongseo University.

Exit operates a complex model consisting of XCCT Labs, XCCT Space, and XCCT Global, conducting various industry-academia cooperation activities to achieve the self-sufficiency of Dongseo University's three Corporate Collaboration Centers and to create new industries.

First, the XR Content Collaboration Center was selected two years ago as a platform institution for the ‘2021 AI-linked Content Innovation Talent Training Project’ supported by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Agency, and is currently operating the project.

As the first regional university to utilize 4th Industrial Revolution technologies, it declared its specialization as a future-oriented cultural content leading university by showcasing the ‘AI Virtual Idol Performance,’ a metaverse virtual concert, via YouTube live streaming.

In November last year, it released the drama ‘Mystery Miss A,’ which used AI-generated scenarios and virtual digital actors. The drama consists of four episodes, each 15 minutes long, featuring AI-based scenario production and digital humans created with XR content production technology.

Promotional poster for 'Mystery Miss A'.

This year, the center has ventured into research and development of virtual digital humans for broadcast weathercasters in collaboration with KNN, and has also started developing 3D digital data of Busan Port and data optimization technology for multi-content in cooperation with KBS Busan Broadcasting Station for video restoration production.

At the CV Design Corporate Collaboration Center, in 2021, they developed the online personal wardrobe service application OTTOK and a fashion smart mirror in partnership with AI companies such as Seor and Samatdi.

These technologies were installed at the Art Malling shopping mall operated by the fashion group Hyungji and underwent a two-year demonstration. The fashion smart mirror analyzes the user's fashion style and recommends products sold within the mall tailored to the customer's preferences.

This year, to commercialize following the demonstration and create new industries, they are installing and operating smart mirrors in local fashion stores. They are also intensifying projects applying AI, VR, and XR meta-technologies to the fashion industry, such as data-based design and virtual reality fashion store implementation in collaboration with local online fashion shopping mall companies.

Demonstration of a fashion smart mirror.

The DX Tourism Corporate Collaboration Center established a virtual company within the university called ‘Dongseo Musical Entertainment’ this year and has formed partnerships with musical specialist companies such as Interpark Theater, Sam Company, EMK Musical Company, and Shinshi Company, strengthening capabilities through intensive extracurricular lectures including company visits.

Since September, they have been producing regular performances such as the original musicals ‘Heartstrings’ and ‘Remember 1919,’ as well as regional company-linked performances like ‘Lonely Castle,’ ‘Chokseoksanseong Aria,’ and ‘The Restaurant That Forgot Orders.’

This center conducts standard field training at local companies while supporting the professional stage debut of its members. In particular, they enhance performance quality through digital technology-based smart stage performances and stage costume production linked with the Department of Fashion Design, with plans to extend to overseas performances in the future, according to the university.

Additionally, projects aimed at solving regional issues are being operated centered on XCCT. In August, they signed an MOU with the Busan Technical Association to address architectural issues in downtown Busan.

They are also promoting a project to build a digital twin for reducing building wind effects on super high-rise buildings by integrating architectural industry and XR content technology. This technology predicts building wind generated before the completion of super high-rise buildings through simulations using game engines and reflects it in architectural design. It can be described as XR content convergence technology for reducing building wind.

Through ‘XCCT,’ Dongseo University’s three Corporate Collaboration Centers (XR Content ICC, CV Design ICC, DX Tourism ICC), linked with local governments and related organizations, are leading future-oriented cultural content.

Hwang Gi-hyun, head of the LINC 3.0 Project Group at Dongseo University, said, “With the full launch of the Dongseo University industry-academia cooperation brand XCCT, we plan to achieve the project group’s goal of ‘a leading model of meta-technology-based cultural content industry-academia cooperation.’ We will realize an entrepreneurial university through the self-sufficiency of Corporate Collaboration Centers and the creation of new industries.”

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