Kaizenaire Insider launches 3 new editorial sections for business networking and business loans comparison services to help business owners in Singapore

When generative artificial intelligence first swept through China’s technology sector, workers faced a clear directive from management: use AI and use it often. Consuming vast numbers of AI tokens – the basic unit of computing power needed to process text or write code – became a badge of honour, with companies often viewing a high token count as a sign that employees were productive and taking initiative. But those computing allowances are now being sharply rolled back as China’s leading...

Justice minister nominee Kim Seung-won said Tuesday, that if he is appointed, he will prevent information about an investigation by the police or prosecution from being “used politically.” His pledge is an apparent counterattack against independent Rep. Han Dong-hoon’s disclosure of probe materials about Kim’s alleged illegal lobbying activities. The justice minister nominee said Han, a former prosecutor, should disclose how he obtained the investigation materials. "If I am given the opportunity to serve as minister, I will correct [the practice of] the political use of investigative information," Kim said in his opening remarks at his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly. Kim, also a two-term lawmaker, was suspected of using his influence to lobby for the approval of a pharmaceutical company's COVID-19 clinical drug trial in October 2021, although prosecutors later suspended the indictment following an investigation. Han brought back the allegation after Kim's nomination was announced. Kim and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) then claimed that Han obtained con

Choi Jae-boong, professor of interdisciplinary AI service design at Sungkyunkwan University, said education in the era of artificial intelligence (AI) should focus on cultivating humanity, while universities should move away from simply trying to restrict students’ use of AI and instead rethink how their curricula are designed. Choi shared such visions during his keynote speech at the 2026 Korea Times Global Conference at Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry building in Seoul, Tuesday. Under the theme of “Beyond AI: building human-centered leadership for the next era,” he stressed that AI innovation is an inevitable future and that both leadership and education must undergo a fundamental shift to prepare for it. “Many Big Tech companies carried out layoffs over the past several years, but when I looked at their headcounts again earlier this year, they had increased because the companies were hiring more AI talent,” Choi said. “However, the focus of Korean universities last year and even this year was how to prevent students from using AI to do their assignments. Almost no

Southeast Asia’s e-wallet giants have spent a decade making digital payments boring, in the best sense. Tap to pay, scan a QR code, top up a prepaid line: no jargon, no friction, no need to understand what happens underneath. Now TrueMoney wants to apply the same trick to blockchain. The Ascend Money-backed fintech, Thailand’s leading […] The post TrueMoney and Fireblocks want Thai users on blockchain rails without them noticing appeared first on e27.

A few weeks ago I had the chance to get a preview into the new iOS 27 features that is launching today. The more streamlined child safety controls come from feedback from parents who deal with the realities of handing off their iPad or second-hand iPhone to their kids. The new iOS 27 child safety

OpenAI has appointed Sanjay Deshmukh as its first Vice President of Asia Pacific sales, a hire that signals the ChatGPT maker is moving beyond product launches and into the harder work of building an enterprise sales machine across one of its fastest-growing markets. Based in Singapore, Deshmukh will lead OpenAI’s commercial efforts across the region […] The post OpenAI hires former Elastic and Snowflake exec Sanjay Deshmukh to lead Asia Pacific sales appeared first on e27.

Asian and global stocks declined today as the benchmark US 10-year Treasury yield climbed above the critical five per cent threshold. That level pressures risk assets because it raises the discount rate applied to future corporate earnings. Semiconductor shares sold off sharply, dragging technology-heavy indices from Tokyo to New York. Investors are weighing two overlapping […] The post The CLARITY Act vote could send crypto to US$2.73T or crash it to US$2.6T appeared first on e27.

For all the talk of Tokyo’s growing openness to international founders, language still shapes how quickly doors open in Japan’s startup community. English-friendly meetups and conferences are far more common than they were a decade ago, but according to a new guide from Blackbox JP, the first few sentences a founder says in Japanese, however […] The post The 90-second pitch that helps foreign founders crack Tokyo’s networking scene appeared first on e27.

Hyosung Heavy Industries Co. said Tuesday it has secured 386.5 billion won ($286.7 million) in power transformer deals with two U.S. technology companies as Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon step ups the group's push into artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. The Korean company will supply 765-kilovolt (kV) ultra-high-voltage transformers worth 220 billion won for an AI data center in the southern United States and 345-kV transformers worth 166.5 billion won for another facility in the northern part of the country. The latest contracts come as Hyosung Group expands its power equipment business amid surging U.S. electricity demand driven by the rapid growth of AI data centers. "With demand for power infrastructure surging in the AI era, the industry is entering a supercycle for the first time in 60 years," Cho said in a release. Cho said Hyosung aims to become one of the world's top three players within five years by providing integrated power solutions ranging from transformers and circuit breakers to power stabilization systems, including high-voltage direct current (HVDC), st

Korea’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has approved Korean Air’s revised plan to integrate its mileage program with Asiana Airlines' program, setting conditions to preserve customer benefits and broaden opportunities to redeem points after the carriers merge. The country’s top antitrust watchdog approved the plan on Monday, nearly two years after it conditionally cleared Korean Air’s acquisition of Asiana. Under the original remedy package, Korean Air was required to submit a mileage integration proposal within six months of completing the acquisition on Dec. 12, 2024, and obtain regulatory approval before implementing it. Korean Air submitted its final proposal to the FTC on Sept. 1 after seven meetings with the regulator and four rounds of requests for revisions. Under the approved plan, Asiana mileage will be separately managed for 10 years from the date of the airlines’ official merger on Dec. 17, even after Asiana ceases to exist as a corporate entity. During that period, Asiana customers may retain their existing mileage instead of converting it to Korean Air’s program. As

Starting from S$1.48 a month, the expanded iCloud+ bundle replaces standalone Apple TV and Arcade subscriptions

When Keir Starmer recently argued that Britain must rebuild its hard power, much of the discussion focused on defence spending. That is understandable. After years of underinvestment, Britain faces difficult choices about military capability at a time of growing geopolitical instability. But money is only part of the challenge. Britain’s more fundamental foreign policy problem […] The post The geopolitics of scarcity: Why middle powers must learn to prioritise appeared first on e27.

OpenAI released GPT-6 Astra on September 3, and the number marketers should actually care about isn’t a reasoning score — it’s a stopwatch. In OpenAI’s own computer-use simulation, Astra finishes a task in roughly 40 minutes against about 75 minutes for its predecessor, GPT-5.6 Sol — nearly half the time for the same job. It […] The post GPT-6 Astra cuts AI task time nearly in half. It still can’t fix your audience data appeared first on e27.

Every AI lab telling you software is about to write itself runs its company on Slack. These are the people closest to the frontier. They say agents will soon build anything you can describe. And yet they haven’t replaced their own chat app. Or their CRM. Or their payroll. If “just build it yourself” made […] The post The SaaSpocalypse will be selective appeared first on e27.

Apple’s next-generation software updates is arriving days before the release of the iPhone 18 Pro, Apple Watch Series 12, and Apple Watch Ultra 4.

Artificial intelligence is quickly becoming part of the education conversation. For schools, teachers, students, and education technology companies, generative AI offers obvious possibilities: faster feedback, personalised explanations, automated administrative work, and new ways to create learning materials. But the most important question for edutech companies may not be what AI can do. It may be […] The post What Southeast Asia’s edutech startups can learn from AI’s limits in education appeared first on e27.

The Atto 1 is by no means the first electric hatchback, but more options are welcome in this relatively underserved space.

AI is automating tasks that used to take hours for humans to do. It’s pushing some costs down and it’s making some teams more productive. Don’t make the mistake, however, of thinking that using AI to do things more productively is enough to ensure your business has a competitive edge and succeeds. If you strip […] The post How to use AI to win (Hint: It has nothing to do with being more productive) appeared first on e27.

Walking into TCL’s showcase at IFA 2026, it was difficult to look at any one product without appreciating the wholistic impact of it all. The company had built its presentation around the idea of a connected home, with televisions, phones, appliances, smart glasses and AI-powered devices occupying different parts of the same experience. Rather than

President Trump is downplaying the mounting concerns about artificial intelligence and resisting calls for regulation, putting him out of step with a growing chorus of worries coming from within the tech industry and both sides of the political aisle. Trump, speaking with reporters over the weekend and in social media posts on Monday, said warnings...

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is calling on House GOP leaders to remain in Washington to allow Congress to consider new limits on AI companies following dire warnings from industry insiders about the threat the technology poses to humanity.  Speaking to reporters Monday in the Capitol, Jeffries said the calls for a slowdown from...

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) on Monday said any legislation Congress passes to regulate AI must have a “light touch” so as not to stifle innovation and tempered recent warnings that superintelligent AI could exterminate humanity as a “worst-case scenario.” “It needs to strike a balance, light touch. You don’t want to stifle innovation...

Political figures across the aisle, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon, are finding themselves on the same side of a growing fight over AI regulations. Sanders and Bannon are among a handful of political leaders speaking at a Tuesday event advocating controls to keep humans in charge of...

President Trump on Sunday backed the use of Flock cameras, a controversial surveillance tool. “Speaking of AI, Flock cameras. You haven't talked a lot about these Flock cameras. A lot of law enforcement say they really help them. Would you be willing to back that?” a reporter asked Trump on Air Force One. “No, I...

BEIJING (AP) — China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday bristled at the Anthropic CEO's call for the U.S. to curb China's artificial intelligence capabilities as part of a wider argument for a global slowdown on AI development. In a lengthy essay published Saturday, Dario Amodei warned that a “Chinese lead in AI would pose...

For many Southeast Asian merchants, selling overseas has never been a question of demand alone. A small brand in Vietnam, Indonesia or Thailand may find buyers on Amazon, eBay, Shopify or social platforms, but the harder problem begins after checkout: paperwork, duties, customs clearance, tracking gaps and freight rates designed for companies shipping far larger […] The post Amilo acquires SG Link to widen cross-border shipping for SEA sellers appeared first on e27.

A growing chorus of artificial intelligence leaders are calling for a slowdown of the technology's development following a researcher's ominous warning that AI could soon destroy humanity. Shortly after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called to slow down AI capability development, several of his competitors, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and xAI CEO Elon Musk, followed...

President Trump defended his approach to AI on Monday, saying the only protections needed are a “STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT” amid calls for AI guardrails. “The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!” he wrote on Truth Social....

Concerns that advancements in AI are becoming a threat to humanity dominated discourse in Washington over the weekend and have quickly moved near the top of the congressional agenda. While little is likely to happen weeks before the midterm elections, Democrats and Republicans alike are now grappling with rising anxiety over the issue. Join The...

LG AI Research, an artificial intelligence (AI) institute of LG Group, has unveiled “expert” AI models based on its EXAONE large language model, which are already delivering tangible results by addressing practical challenges encountered in real world industrial environments. The models were unveiled during LG AI Talk Concert 2026, held by LG AI Research to introduce use cases of its expert AI models, each specialized in manufacturing, science and finance. “Building a good AI model is important, but LG AI Research’s mission is to solve difficult problems that industries have struggled with for years,” LG AI Research co-head Lim Woo-hyung said during his keynote speech. “There are already many general-purpose AI models in the world that generate excellent answers. But solving problems in industrial settings requires AI that can understand numerous variables, even the 1 percent of exceptional cases. AI can prove its value in industry only when it can demonstrate tangible results.” As part of that approach, LG AI Research unveiled EXAONE Tabular and EXAONE Omni-Inspect. Tabular

KB Financial Group’s surprise decision to nominate Vice Chairman Lee Jae-keun as its next leader instead of extending incumbent Chairman Yang Jong-hee’s term is expected to trigger a sweeping overhaul of its subsidiaries’ management, industry officials said Monday. The move has also fueled speculation over whether the push for generational change will spread to other major financial holding companies. With 54 subsidiary CEOs across the country’s five major financial groups facing term expirations by the end of this year, a major wave of executive reshuffles is expected. On Friday, KB Financial’s chairman recommendation committee officially nominated Lee as the final candidate for the chairmanship. Because Yang was widely anticipated to secure a second term following record-breaking financial results, market observers view the outcome as a dramatic leadership shift. Yang was born in 1961, while Lee was born in 1966, making the latter five years younger. Explaining its rationale, the committee noted, “This is a critical juncture to execute bold institutional reforms and genera

The surprise nomination of KB Financial Group Vice Chairman Lee Jae-keun as its next chairman shows that the financial sector is under growing pressure from regulators to reform governance by strengthening board independence and improving fairness and transparency in leader selection procedures, according to observers in the industry. Current Chairman Yang Jong-hee, another contender, did not get the chance for a second term even though KB Financial had delivered record-high net profits of more than 5 trillion won ($3.7 billion) for two consecutive years under Yang’s leadership. Although the group cited a need for “transformation and generational renewal,” it is widely believed in the industry that the government's move is beginning to affect governance at financial holding companies. President Lee Jae Myung and financial authorities have long raised concerns over extended tenures of leaders at the holding companies. They have pointed out that incumbent heads have a relatively strong advantage in succession processes and that boards may not be able to provide adequate checks and b

Samsung Display has developed what it says is the world’s first smartphone OLED panel to combine 2K resolution with a 165Hz refresh rate, bringing sharper images and faster motion to high-end mobile gaming. The 6.9-inch panel will debut on iQOO 16, a high-performance gaming smartphone from Vivo’s premium iQOO brand, which is scheduled to launch in September, Samsung Display said on Monday. The company said its new OLED panel delivers about 30 percent lower screen power consumption than recently released gaming smartphone OLEDs with 1.5K resolution and a 165Hz refresh rate. It reaches a maximum brightness of 2,800 nits in high-brightness mode and can reach 10,000 nits at a 1 percent on-pixel ratio, according to Samsung Display. Higher resolution and refresh rates require more pixels and more demanding drive circuitry, making it difficult to maintain brightness and power efficiency at the same time, the company said. To address those demands, Samsung Display increased the thickness of pixel signal wiring by 10 percent, expanding the cross-sectional area through which current flows and r

A new power plant is beginning to reshape how energy reaches Korea’s sprawling Daesan petrochemical complex, with HD Hyundai E&F starting commercial operations at an LNG cogeneration facility built to supply both electricity and heat. HD Hyundai E&F, a group-energy subsidiary of HD Hyundai Oilbank, held a completion ceremony Monday at its plant in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, the company said. The project cost about 435 billion won ($303 million), with construction beginning in March 2024 after HD Hyundai E&F was established in 2021. The company completed testing of the facility before beginning commercial operations in late July, it said. The plant can generate 290 megawatts of electricity and 321 tons of heat per hour, using a high-efficiency combined-cycle system fueled by liquefied natural gas. Electricity and heat produced at the facility will be supplied to companies operating in Daesan’s petrochemical complex, including H&L Advanced, providing what the company described as stable and competitively priced energy. Song Myung-jun, president of HD Hyundai Oilbank, said comple

Kia unveiled the PV7, its second dedicated all-electric platform beyond vehicle (PBV) model, at IAA Transportation 2026 in Hannover, Germany, Monday, expanding its electric commercial vehicle lineup with more cargo capacity and flexibility. The PV7 is available in Cargo and Passenger variants and is designed for a range of uses, including logistics, fleet operations, shuttle services and small and medium-sized businesses. Kia plans to launch the model in Korea and Europe in the second half of 2027, with additional markets and derivatives to follow. The PV7 is built on Kia’s PBV-dedicated Electric-Global Modular Platform for Service architecture and features a flat-floor design to maximize interior space. It follows the PV5, which was named the 2026 International Van of the Year. “The PV7 marks the next step in our journey toward personalized mobility, building on the foundation established by the PV5,” Kia CEO Song Ho-sung said. “By bringing together hardware developed for specific applications, business-tailored software and dedicated PBV services, the PV7 goes beyond the vehicl

POSCO International said Monday its U.S. subsidiary will raise 532.9 billion won ($395.8 million) through a rights offering to acquire shale gas assets in the United States. The company said the funds will be raised by its wholly owned subsidiary, POSCO International E&P USA, but did not disclose the name of the shale gas assets or its partner in the deal. In addition to the rights offering, POSCO International will extend 266.1 billion won in loans to the U.S. subsidiary by March 15 next year, a company spokesperson said. POSCO International is the trading and energy arm of POSCO Group, a steelmaking-to-energy conglomerate. This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.

Dongsuh Foods’ Maxim Mocha Gold is marking its 37th anniversary this year, maintaining its position as Korea’s top-selling coffee mix brand. The brand sold about 5.3 billion sticks over the past year, according to Dongsuh Foods. The company attributed its long-running popularity to continuous adjustments to the product’s flavor and aroma in response to changing consumer preferences. Dongsuh Foods introduced Korea’s first coffee mix in 1976 and launched Maxim Mocha Gold in 1989 after years of research into consumers’ evolving tastes. The company said it developed the product to deliver a richer aroma and smoother taste through research into bean selection, roasting and extraction. The brand has recently emphasized its emotional appeal through an advertising campaign featuring actress Park Bo-young. Under the slogan, “Let’s be happy now, a cup of happiness now,” the campaign focuses on small moments of comfort and relaxation in everyday life. Dongsuh Foods has also expanded the brand experience beyond its products through pop-up cafes and other consumer events. Since 2015,

Otoki held a memorial ceremony on Friday at Ham Tai-ho Hall in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, to mark the 10th anniversary of the death of its founder and honorary chairman, Ham Tai-ho. The event honored Ham’s legacy as a pioneer of Korea’s food industry and reaffirmed his management philosophy of prioritizing product quality and improving people’s diets. Born in Wonsan, South Hamgyong Province in what is now part of North Korea in 1930, Ham volunteered for military service during the Korean War. After completing his service, he developed a vision of contributing to people’s lives through the food industry. Ham gained management experience at a food ingredient manufacturer before founding Poonglim Trading, the predecessor to Otoki, in 1969. The company launched their first instant curry mix that same year, followed by other products including soups, ketchup, mayonnaise and vinegar. Poonglim Trading was renamed Otoki in 1973. Otoki helped shape Korea’s evolving food culture through convenience foods, including its popular 3-Minute Sauce lineup. Ham championed the principle of contrib

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) is expanding financial support for food exporters in Gangwon Province as part of a broader push to help companies outside the Seoul metropolitan area enter overseas markets, the state-run lender said Monday. The initiative’s first beneficiary is Sejun F&B, a rice-based food manufacturer located in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province. A maker of convenience foods including rice cakes and “nurungji” (scorched rice), the company is developing its own brand as it looks to build a presence in international markets. Korea Eximbank CEO Hwang Ki-yeon visited the food maker’s production facilities, Friday, as part of the bank’s efforts to support the overseas expansion of regional K-food businesses. Under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed last month between Korea Eximbank and the Gangwon Provincial Government, the lender provides participating companies with loans at preferential rates, while Gangwon Province reimburses the bank for part of the interest-rate reduction. The financing comes as rice-based food exports have grown steadily ov

LG Electronics has opened its first business-to-business showcase for AI-connected home technology in the Middle East, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as the company pushes to expand its presence in the Global South. The space, located inside an LG brand shop in Riyadh, is designed to look like a fully furnished premium home, with a living room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom outfitted with built-in appliances such as ovens, range hoods and refrigerators tailored to local tastes, along with furniture from lifestyle brand partners. The showcase is aimed at construction firms, real estate developers and hospitality companies that could adopt LG's technology in large-scale residential or commercial projects. At the center of the display is LG's AI home hub, ThinQ ON, which lets visitors control appliances and other connected devices using voice commands powered by generative AI. The hub also connects with Homey Pro, a smart home platform used across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, allowing a wide range of third-party devices to be linked into a single system. LG also showed off a "turnkey" bui