Kakao Impact, KAIST team up for social change through technology

Kakao Impact, a corporate foundation of Kakao Corp., South Korea’s top mobile platform company, said on Tuesday it has agreed to work with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (KAIST) to develop technologies and nurture talent that can contribute to social change.

The two parties signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to collaborate on various projects and research related to Kakao Impact’s goal of Tech for Impact, which aims to use digital technology to solve social problems.

As part of the agreement, they plan to launch a Tech for Impact class for KAIST students in the second semester of this year to raise awareness of and sensitivity to social issues and propose solutions using digital technology. Kakao Impact members and Kakao developers will serve as mentors for the class.

They also plan to provide technical advice and support based on the projects proposed in the class and to conduct research on technology development and ethics related to social issues.

Kakao Impact said it will continue to expand its Tech for Impact initiative by signing more agreements with other universities in Seoul and other regions that are linked to Kakao’s “Kakao Tech Campus” program.

“We will help students from various universities in Korea as well as KAIST’s Department of Computer Science to grow into programs that participate and create on their own,” said Lee Kwang-hyung, president of KAIST.

“We expect that this agreement with KAIST will help technology accelerate the resolution of social problems,” Hong Eun-taek, chairman of Kakao Impact, said.

Write to Sang-Eun Lucia Lee at selee@hankyung.com