Samsung Electronics' 'Bixby' Receives Medal at Design Korea Festival

Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to Host 'Design Korea Festival' from 19th to December 18th
Award Ceremony for Korea Design Awards and Excellent Design Products, Exhibition of Winning Works
Event Content Released on Design Korea Festival Website

Lee Don-tae, Head of Design Management Center at Samsung Electronics. (Photo by Samsung Electronics)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced that it will hold the 'Design Korea Festival 2020' from the 19th of this month to July 18th. This event is Korea's representative comprehensive design expo hosted by the Ministry.

Under the theme of 'Design, Drawing Data,' the festival exhibits cases where social phenomena and other data have been visualized and solved from a design perspective based on data.

This year, due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), both physical and online exhibitions will be held simultaneously. Online job consulting and meetings via social networking services (SNS) will also be broadcast live.

Approximately 880 products will be exhibited. The event consists of planned exhibitions, achievement exhibitions, award exhibitions, excellent design product showrooms, and designer showcases.

Specifically, visitors can see ▲100 products applying data-based design and re-examining the history of Korean design ▲about 250 achievements from government projects ▲200 award-winning works from the Korea Design Exhibition ▲178 excellent design products.

The theme exhibition displayed data-based design works. Representative examples include artistic visualization of air quality changes, installation of yellow carpets in potential accident-prone areas, and operation of owl buses analyzing areas with high nighttime floating populations.

The special exhibition showed early products such as fans and televisions alongside the latest products, presenting the chronology and future direction of Korean design.

The achievement exhibition displayed global lifestyle luxury goods selected as design-led consumer products and student products created by integrating new technologies and design.

Job fairs, conferences and seminars, design Korea participant product planning exhibitions through Korea's leading online malls, and domestic and international buyer meetings are conducted online.

At the international conference, Paul Priestman, David Bihanic, and Jang Seonghwan, CEO of 203, will give lectures on the future of design business in an era of change such as the data economy and artificial intelligence (AI) technology development.

The 'Korea Design Awards' and 'Excellent Design Product Selection' ceremonies will also be held.

Lee Dontae, head of Samsung Electronics Design Management Center, received the Silver Tower Industrial Medal, the highest award of the Korea Design Awards.

He was highly evaluated for designing Bixby, a user-centered voice recognition function, and demonstrating convergence technology in new industries such as robots and AI.

Choi Heonjeong, Executive Director of Winia Dimchae, received the Industrial Medal. He developed Korea's first metal stand-type kimchi refrigerator and slim air purifier.

Professor Jin Jaehan of Hansung University was awarded the Order of Service Merit. He was recognized for contributing to Korea's hosting of the 2001 World Design Congress and enhancing the design and technological capabilities of small and medium enterprises while working at the Korea Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT).

A total of seven Presidential Citations, including CDRA Associates, were also awarded.

In the GD product awards, LG Electronics' PuriCare Dual Water Purifier received the Presidential Award. Samsung Electronics' Galaxy Z Flip and Solbi & Solbini's AI Double Motion Desk won the Prime Minister's Award.

Park Jinkyu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, emphasized, "Korea's design industry has steadily grown both quantitatively and qualitatively, and the public and private sectors must continue to work together to sustain this growth and development."

Vice Minister Park said, "The government will strive to activate design-led product and service development through integrated platform construction, nurture designers with an understanding of new technologies and creative ideas, and create an environment where design is properly valued."

By making a reservation in advance through the online homepage, visitors can visit the Korea Design Center in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, and directly view the theme exhibition items and award-winning excellent design products offline.