Keycutstock Competes with Shutterstock Worth 3.3 Trillion KRW
LG's Ultra-Large AI 'ExaOne'... Unlimited Potential for Image AI
[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] FourByFour is showing strong performance. This appears to be influenced by LG's move to lead the trend of convergence between visual artificial intelligence (AI) and language AI. LG recently predicted that just as the conversational AI chatbot ‘ChatGPT’ has made a significant impact in the field of natural language search, image captioning technology will bring innovation to the image search sector.
As of 1:06 PM on the 1st, FourByFour is trading at 16,130 KRW, up 18.34% from the previous day.
LG AI Research Institute is holding the ‘LG Global AI Challenge’ online until the end of April. The competition focuses on ‘zero-shot image captioning,’ evaluating how accurately AI can understand and describe images it has never seen before. ‘Zero-shot image captioning’ is a technology where AI, similar to human visual cognition, can view images containing objects, animals, or landscapes it has not encountered previously and, based on learned data, independently understand and infer the content to explain it in text.
LG expects that zero-shot image captioning, which approaches human visual cognition, will greatly contribute to the development ecosystem of ‘EXAONE,’ a massive multimodal AI capable of expressing images as text and visualizing text as images. LG AI Research Institute is conducting this competition in collaboration with the ‘Seoul National University Graduate School of AI,’ which is researching the massive multimodal AI ‘EXAONE,’ and ‘Shutterstock,’ which is jointly preparing commercial services for image captioning AI.
As zero-shot image captioning technology advances, it is expected to directly benefit everyday life. It can analyze the vast amount of image data uploaded online daily to improve search convenience and accuracy. It is also anticipated to contribute to the development of accessibility solutions for the visually impaired.
An LG official stated, “Just as ChatGPT has recently gained attention in the natural language search field, image captioning technology will bring innovation to the image search domain.”
Founded in 2017, FourByFour is a visual content specialized solution company operating a platform for producing and distributing ultra-high-definition video content. Based on its unique visual realization capabilities and creative strengths, it has produced numerous ultra-high-definition contents and new media immersive contents that require high realism. Using its self-developed AI deep learning-based image quality enhancement solution (PIXELL), it has established an efficient production process and content mass production pipeline for ultra-high-definition and immersive content.
The AI-based deep learning image quality enhancement solution PIXELL has advanced its algorithm to strengthen deep learning in cognitive image quality improvement using a deep learning algorithm model. High-quality content that has undergone image quality enhancement was used as training datasets. It has superior technological competitiveness compared to competitors in algorithm training. PIXELL solution automates most image quality enhancement processes, including cognitive image quality, thereby reducing the time required for the company’s nine-step image quality correction process.
Since 2020, FourByFour has also operated a video distribution platform called Keycut Stock. It is a platform that distributes ultra-high-definition stock videos (short clips) allowing users to download and utilize ultra-high-definition videos as desired. It is similar to Shutterstock, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Keycut Stock has strong competitiveness by upgrading image quality to ultra-high-definition (8K). Based on AI deep learning technology, it can upgrade 4K videos to 8K and enhance the clarity of 8K videos to a different level. Its greatest competitive advantage is upgrading videos registered by creators to 8K resolution for free. This service is not offered by Shutterstock, Getty Images, or other global competitors.
Major clients include global home appliance and display companies such as LG Electronics, LG Display, and Samsung Display. FourByFour produces video content for various exhibitions like CES, organized by partner companies. It creates demo videos broadcasted on TVs made by Samsung and LG. Advertising agencies such as Cheil Worldwide, HS Ad, and Daehong Communications, global theme park operators, and local governments are also key clients. The company is diversifying its client base from traditional ultra-high-definition content suppliers to home shopping companies, entertainment firms, and sports leisure content providers.
FourByFour became the first domestic content company to join the ‘8K Association,’ a global content image quality council led by Samsung Electronics. It also joined the Giant Screen Cinema Association for the first time in Korea and the World Theme Park Association based on its global theme park content production capabilities. Its memberships in various global associations related to content image quality prove its recognition for global-level technological capabilities in producing high-definition and immersive content. It has received various certifications related to content quality and production capabilities from world-renowned companies such as Dolby, Ateme, and Spin Digital for its ability to realistically implement content image quality beyond 8K.
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