LG Uplus held the "Shift Day" event to support the growth and global expansion of domestic AI Start - Up companies. Marking its second year after last year, the event served as a venue to share the creation of a Start - Up ecosystem and the results of collaboration. About 150 people, including CEO Hong Bum-Shik of LG Uplus, key executives, and Start - Up representatives, attended at the Yongsan headquarters in Seoul on the 24th.
"Shift" is LG Uplus' AI open innovation program that aims to discover promising early-stage Start - Up companies and support their growth through technology collaboration and investment. At the event, 11 Start - Up companies were announced as the final selections for Shift's second cohort, and collaboration results with first-cohort Start - Up companies were also shared. The second cohort includes a total of 11 companies: ▲ four AI agent firms ▲ four AI/MLOps firms ▲ one AI security firm ▲ two AI SaaS firms.
LG Uplus plans to provide these Start - Up companies with opportunities to enter global markets. In partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), it will support reducing AI development expense, and with Z Venture Capital (ZVC) it will set up a joint investment structure to help expansion into Japan and Southeast Asia. It also plans to work with Salesforce, Inc. in the United States to provide global sales and marketing opportunities.
In addition, LG Uplus will support participation in global events such as the Mobile World Congress (MWC), and five Start - Up companies are also set to take part in the "4 Years From Now (4YFN)" event in Barcelona next year.
Hong Bum-Shik, president of LG Uplus, said, "Shift is a program that comprehensively provides the technology, business, and investment support needed by Start - Up companies," adding, "We will build a global cooperation model and support the entire process so that Start - Up companies can achieve real business results."
LG Uplus plans to expand joint programs with global partners and create joint funds with overseas corporations to build a global investment ecosystem.