GIST Student Startups in AI, Bio, and Advanced Sensors Gain Global Attention

AI-Based Brain Disease Treatment: Neurophet
Compact and High-Precision LiDAR Sensors: SOSLAB
Stratospheric Communication Platform Development: ICARUS

(From left) Neurofit co-CEOs Bin Jungil and Kim Donghyun.

Companies founded and grown by students of the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) are gaining attention as successful cases of "K-Deep Tech Startups," standing out in diverse fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), biotechnology, advanced sensors, and aerospace.

One prominent example is Neurophet Co., Ltd. (co-CEOs Bin Jungil and Kim Donghyun), a company specializing in AI-based diagnosis and treatment of brain diseases, which made headlines after successfully being listed on the KOSDAQ in July.

Neurophet was founded in 2016 by Bin Jungil, then a master's student in the Department of Electrical, Electronic, and Computer Engineering at GIST, together with Kim Donghyun, a doctoral student in the same department. The company develops full-cycle solutions and therapeutic medical devices for the diagnosis, treatment, and guided therapy of brain diseases based on AI technology.

(From left) Neurophet SCALE PET, a PET (Positron Emission Tomography) image quantitative analysis software, and Neurophet AQUA, a neurodegeneration image analysis software. Provided by GIST

Neurophet has achieved a high market share in the domestic brain imaging analysis AI sector while expanding collaborations with global pharmaceutical companies. With its KOSDAQ listing in July 2025, the company has also demonstrated the potential of student-founded startups in the global market.

The growth of Neurophet is closely linked to GIST’s systematic startup support programs. Bin Jungil was able to systematically prepare for entrepreneurship even as a graduate student, thanks to programs such as the "GIST Sprint for Startup (GSS)"-which helps students validate their startup ideas and explore feasibility-as well as entrepreneurship education and startup competitions.

In particular, by winning the grand prize at the 2nd Joint Startup Competition for Science and Technology Specialized Universities in 2015, Neurophet gained the opportunity for overseas startup training at the Korea Innovation Center Washington D.C. (KIC Washington). During this training, the company engaged in investment attraction activities and secured initial funding immediately after its founding.

Through the GIST Technology Innovation Business Group’s (GTI) Innovation Commercialization Project, Neurophet developed the "Next-Generation Neuro Navigation System" based on academic research results. After establishing the company, they received a technology transfer from the school and commercialized it as their first product.

Bin Jungil recalled, "I was able to continue both academic research and product development simultaneously, and the school transferred the technology under reasonable conditions, taking into account the student startup situation, which was a decisive help in the early stages of the business."

Additionally, Neurophet’s first office was set up within the GIST Startup Incubation Center, providing an optimal environment to combine academic research and startup activities. The company then worked closely with the Gwangju Center for Creative Economy & Innovation, rapidly growing by attracting a total investment of 8 billion won in Series A and B funding rounds.

CEO Jeong Jiseong of SOSLAB.

Neurophet is not the only successful example of GIST student startups. In the field of autonomous driving, SOSLAB Co., Ltd. was founded in 2016 by CEO Jisung Jung, then a doctoral student at GIST, together with fellow researchers. The company has developed world-class compact and high-precision LiDAR sensors, growing into a core component supplier for autonomous vehicles and smart cities.

SOSLAB has expanded collaborations with global automakers, increasing its potential for overseas market entry and gaining worldwide recognition for its technological competitiveness. In June last year, the company successfully listed on the KOSDAQ.

Recently, SOSLAB secured 43 billion won in investment and is expanding its fabless business for high-performance semiconductor chips, "SPAD (Single Photon Avalanche Diode)," for use in autonomous vehicles and robots, as well as increasing mass production of LiDAR for robots. The company has also been selected as an official partner for the LiDAR sensor segment of NVIDIA's autonomous driving and robotics software platform, "NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Orin." Leveraging its world-class technology in autonomous driving and smart mobility, SOSLAB is expanding its influence in the global market.

The aerospace startup ICARUS, which develops stratospheric communication platforms based on unmanned airships, was established last year by Lee Jongwon, a master's graduate from GIST’s Department of Mechanical Robotics Engineering. Lee is an alumnus of the "Distributed Control and Automation Systems Laboratory," led by Professor Ahn Hyosung, an authority in control theory and unmanned autonomous systems.

ICARUS aims to deploy unmanned airships capable of long-term flight for over 10 years in the stratosphere to build an "aerial communication network" connecting the world. This would provide ultra-high-speed communication services at one-tenth the cost of conventional satellites or terrestrial base stations. As an initial market entry, ICARUS is developing autonomous airships for maritime surveillance. Currently, only about 16% of the ocean is monitored, and manned surveillance systems and drones face limitations in cost and flight duration, making it difficult to monitor vast areas. ICARUS seeks to fill this gap with low-cost, long-endurance unmanned airships and is actively pursuing market entry, including signing MOUs with specialized suppliers to the Korea Coast Guard.

The foundation for these achievements lies in GIST’s systematic support. Originating from the Startup Technology Support Center established in 2000, the GIST Technology Innovation Business Group (GTI) operates a variety of programs to support and promote entrepreneurship and the spread of results, including the Korean-style I-Corps (a Ministry of Science and ICT-led startup support program based on research achievements), fostering prospective entrepreneurs, the Innopolis Campus (a Ministry of Science and ICT-led university-based youth entrepreneurship support program), and customized commercialization for startups. These programs have actively supported the entrepreneurial efforts of students and researchers.

Kwon Inchang, head of the Technology Innovation Business Group, stated, "The achievements of GIST student startups such as Neurophet demonstrate that student entrepreneurship can directly lead to technological innovation and industrial growth. We will continue to foster student-founded companies capable of competing in the global market by creating a startup-friendly campus and providing investment-linked support."

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