Health Management App 'Cashwalk' Launches iOS Version in the US
Careerly Expands to Vietnam, Secures 30,000 Subscribers
CES Innovation Award Winner 'PetNow' Plans to Establish US Corporation
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] Korean startups are accelerating their overseas expansion. As information and communication technology (ICT), including smartphones, becomes widespread worldwide, the stages for startups to enter are diversifying. They are leveraging abundant technological capabilities and talent as competitive advantages and targeting local markets through country-specific customization strategies.
Nudge Healthcare, which operates the digital healthcare application 'Cashwalk,' has been stepping up its global expansion by officially launching the iOS version on the U.S. App Store recently, following the release of the Android version in December 2020.
With a domestic cumulative download count reaching 18 million, Cashwalk aims to grow into a global health management app and is operated by a local subsidiary in the United States.
The U.S. version of Cashwalk maintains the reward system based on step counts but designs the app considering local consumption patterns. The U.S. Cashwalk iOS version offers extensive widget customization features and a certification shot function that can be shared on social media. The number of gift card partners has also been expanded to over 20, enhancing user convenience.
Some Korean startups have discovered new possibilities in Vietnam. 'Careerly,' a representative career SNS for domestic IT industry workers, succeeded in its first overseas expansion through a solid pre-user acquisition strategy. Before the official app launch, it opened a newsletter service and secured nearly 30,000 subscribers, establishing its presence.
Additionally, it secured about 60 curators composed of experts from well-known Vietnamese tech companies and unicorn companies in advance, designing the app as a career platform where users can network conveniently. Careerly officially launched its Vietnamese app version last March and has selected Indonesia as another target for expansion, focusing on growing its overseas market.
There are also startups that accelerated their overseas expansion by gaining recognition for their technology on the international stage. 'Petnow,' which developed an app service for pet identification through registering nose prints (biometric nose patterns), won the Best Innovation Award at CES 2022, the world's largest IT exhibition.
After taking a photo of a dog's nose with the app and entering the owner and dog's identity, the information is registered in the app. When identity verification is needed later, the app captures the pet's face, and artificial intelligence (AI) automatically locates and recognizes the nose print position to verify identity.
Petnow, which initially planned to build its foundation domestically for 1-2 years before expanding overseas, has confirmed its competitiveness in the global market and plans to advance the timeline by establishing a U.S. subsidiary this year and actively pursuing overseas business.
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