South Korea Names 4 Hubs for 2026 Cultural Diversity City Program South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Arts & Culture Education Service said Monday they have selected four areas — South Jeolla Province, Busan, North Chungcheong Province and Ansan — as the final "2026 Cultural Diversity Hub Cities." The program aims to build urban communities where diverse cultural expression can coexist by linking each area's cultural heritage, contemporary arts and residents' everyday lives. It focuses on identifying local cultural contexts and creating an ecosystem to protect and promote them. The four hubs will begin full-scale activities from March through December, including research, creative workshops and citizen-participation programs. The Jeonnam Cultural Foundation, Busan Cultural Foundation, Chungbuk Cultural Foundation and Ansan Cultural Foundation will carry out the projects. The Korea Arts & Culture Education Service, the agency in charge of advancing cultural-diversity policy, will sign agreements with each foundation and support operations. Im Jin Taek, president of the Korea Arts & Culture Education Service, said the initiative is a process of finding and connecting specific cultural assets embedded in daily life. He said it will help residents rediscover local culture, feel pride in their communities and build a practical foundation for diverse cultures to coexist.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-02-09 09:54:00

Naver/Kurly steps up delivery race to win over Coupang customers SEOUL, February 09 (AJP) - South Korea’s dominant internet platform, has rolled out same-day grocery delivery in partnership with fresh-food unicorn Market Kurly, stepping up efforts to capitalize on mounting reputational troubles at e-commerce leader Coupang. Under the expanded service, Naver and Kurly’s joint grocery platform, Kurly N Mart, began offering same-day delivery on Monday. Orders placed between 11 p.m. the previous day and 3 p.m. on the same day are now delivered before midnight. The option applies to both Kurly N Mart and Kurly’s main platform. Previously, Kurly N Mart focused on early-morning delivery, with orders placed by 11 p.m. arriving by 8 a.m. the following day. While that service remains in place, the addition of same-day delivery is expected to ease pressure around order cutoffs and encourage more frequent purchases. The new delivery window will initially operate in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, with plans for nationwide expansion. Naver said Kurly N Mart, launched in September last year, has recorded average monthly transaction growth of more than 50 percent. January transaction volume surged more than sevenfold compared with September. Fresh produce transactions rose 82 percent over the same period, while meat sales climbed 74 percent. Ultra-fresh items such as eggs, milk and tofu posted particularly high repurchase rates. After five months of operation, top-selling products shifted from meal kits and ready-to-eat foods to a broader mix including produce, seafood and meat, reflecting growing demand for quality and freshness. Sales of fast-moving consumer goods such as toilet paper, detergent and toothbrushes also jumped more than fivefold, indicating that Kurly N Mart is increasingly used for routine grocery shopping. Repeat purchasing has strengthened as well. The repurchase rate reached 60 percent, roughly double the level recorded in October. Naver attributed the rise in customer loyalty to synergies with its membership program, including lower thresholds for free delivery and additional benefits. More than 90 percent of Kurly N Mart users are Naver Plus members, the company said. The number of “core regulars” who used the service at least 10 times over five months was about 70 times higher among members than non-members. Around 80 percent of transactions are generated through the Naver Plus Store app, underscoring the steady shift toward mobile-based grocery shopping. Naver’s expansion comes as rival platforms benefit from weakening confidence in Coupang following last year’s massive data breach. According to data from IGAWorks’ Mobile Index, new installations of Naver’s shopping app surged to 935,507 in January, up more than 147,000 from December and the highest level since June. Over the same period, Coupang’s app installs fell to 467,641, down nearly 60,000 month on month. Meanwhile, market tracker Wiseapp.Retail reported that Coupang’s monthly active users declined to 33 million in January, down about one million, or 3.2 percent, from December. The drop was nearly ten times larger than the previous month’s decrease. Industry analysts say the figures reflect eroding consumer trust following the November breach that affected almost all of Coupang’s more than 33 million users. 2026-02-09 09:50:42

PSG’s Lee Kang-in scores in second match back from injury for his second league goal Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in scored his second Ligue 1 goal of the season as PSG routed Marseille 5-0. PSG won the 2025-2026 Ligue 1 Round 21 home match at Parc des Princes in Paris on Sunday. Lee came on in the 68th minute for Bradley Barcola and needed six minutes to score. He took a pass from Senny Mayulu, slipped past a defender with a quick touch inside the penalty area and fired a left-footed shot that stayed low and beat the goalkeeper. It was Lee’s first goal in two matches since returning from a thigh injury suffered in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final on Jan. 18. In his return match against Strasbourg on Feb. 2, he delivered a sharp pass that set up the winning goal. Lee has two league goals and two assists this season, and three goals and three assists in all competitions. With the win, PSG extended its league winning streak to seven and moved back to the top of the table with 51 points (16 wins, three draws, two losses), edging Lens (49). 2026-02-09 09:48:00

Report: Nvidia's autonomus driving platform Alpamayo to reshape global ecosystem SEOUL, February 09 (AJP) - South Korea's top automotive research body suggests that a new open-source platform from Nvidia could be the "breakthrough" needed for an industry currently paralyzed by ballooning costs and technical gridlock. According to a report released February 9 by the South Korea Automotive Technology Institute (KATECH), the Alpamayo platform aims to solve the "black box" problem of modern artificial intelligence by teaching cars to explain their driving decisions in natural language. The report, authored by senior researcher Kim Han-sol, notes that the dream of fully autonomous Level 4 vehicles has hit a wall. Major research firms now estimate that the global rollout of robotaxis may be delayed until 2029 or 2030, largely because the cost of developing and verifying these systems has become too high for any single company to handle. Furthermore, current "end-to-end" AI models—the kind favored by companies like Tesla—are often criticized because they cannot provide a clear reasoning process for their actions, making it difficult to satisfy safety regulators. Nvidia's solution, featured at CES 2026, relies on what the company calls "Physical AI". The Alpamayo platform is built on three main pillars: a 10-billion-parameter vision-language-action model called Alpamayo 1, a simulation environment known as AlpaSim, and a massive dataset collected from 2,500 cities across 25 countries. Unlike previous systems, Alpamayo 1 uses a "chain-of-thought" technique to process visual information into linguistic context, allowing the vehicle to generate a driving command and a logical explanation for that command simultaneously. The KATECH analysis highlights a unique hybrid architecture within the platform that balances AI intuition with rigid safety rules. While the Alpamayo 1 model handles most of the driving, a traditional rule-based system acts as a "Policy and Safety Evaluator" to monitor the AI in real time. If the AI encounters a situation where its probabilistic reasoning is uncertain, the rule-based system takes control as a safety guardrail. This transparency is expected to help automakers secure Level 3 or higher certifications more quickly, as regulators will finally have a way to audit the vehicle's decision-making process. For South Korean automakers and other global manufacturers, the move toward an open platform could shift the industry's power dynamics. Nvidia is offering the Alpamayo 1 model in a format that developers can modify to fit local regulations or specific hardware. This approach is intended to lower the barrier to entry for latecomers and reduce the fear of "platform lock-in" among established car brands. However, the report warns that while the technology is being offered for research and evaluation, any commercial deployment will still require separate licensing agreements. 2026-02-09 09:30:05

Hyundai Rotem to Exhibit at Saudi Defense Show WDS 2026 Hyundai Rotem said Sunday it will take part in the Saudi International Defense Exhibition, WDS 2026, as it steps up efforts to expand in the Middle East. The event, the region’s largest defense exhibition, is a key part of Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” strategy to build a self-reliant defense industry, the company said. Hyundai Rotem said it will focus on promoting its ground weapons systems and technologies aimed at future battlefield needs. It plans to highlight mobile weapons systems, manned-unmanned teaming and hydrogen mobility technologies. At its exhibition hall, the company will display mock-ups of the K2 main battle tank, which it said has been well received in global markets, along with K2-based variants including an obstacle-clearing vehicle and an armored recovery vehicle. It will also show a 30-metric-ton wheeled armored vehicle developed for export, plus mock-ups of a command post vehicle and a medical evacuation vehicle based on its existing wheeled armored vehicle platform. Hyundai Rotem said it will debut a multipurpose unmanned ground vehicle, the HR-Sherpa, fitted with a counter-drone system. The company said the system uses radar to detect drones, establish defenses and support guard and surveillance missions. The HR-Sherpa is an unmanned platform designed to carry different equipment depending on the mission. The company said in-wheel motors are applied to all six wheels, a design that boosts propulsion and allows the vehicle to keep moving even if one wheel develops a problem. Also on display are a full-size reconnaissance drone and one-third-scale mock-ups equipped with a surface-to-air guided missile system and a surface-to-surface guided missile system. Hyundai Rotem said it will also show its hydrogen fuel cell-based unmanned mobility electrification platform, Black Veil, to overseas markets for the first time after debuting it last year at the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition, known as ADEX. “We plan to demonstrate the diverse operational capabilities of ground weapons systems based on advanced future technologies such as AI, unmanned systems and hydrogen, in line with the rapidly changing future battlefield environment,” a Hyundai Rotem official said.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-02-09 09:21:29

South Korea, Saudi Arabia agree to expand defense cooperation SEOUL, February 9 (AJP) - South Korea has agreed to strengthen cooperation with Saudi Arabia in the areas of security and defense, the Ministry of Defense said on Monday. Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back met his Saudi counterpart Khalid bin Salman Al Saud in Riyadh over the weekend, where they signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to expand biliteral cooperation. They said the MOU would establish a joint framework covering research and development, defense technology, and systems innovation, laying the groundwork for a forward-looking strategic partnership. Khalid said South Korea's technology and experience could help bolster Saudi Arabia's defense capabilities. Later in the day, Ahn attended a defense expo, stopping at booths run by South Korean defense companies to hear their views on arms exports. Now in its third year, the Saudi World Defense Show is one of the world's largest defense exhibitions. It kicked off on Sunday and runs through Thursday, with about 700 companies from 80 countries participating. 2026-02-09 09:21:09

Three Late Joseon-Era Woodblocks Returned to South Korea From U.S. The Korea Heritage Service and the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation said they received three woodblocks used to print collected works from the late Joseon period and the Japanese colonial era, donated by an American and a Korean American owner.  The donation ceremony was held on Feb. 8 (local time) at the Korean Empire legation in Washington.  The items are woodblocks for Cheokam Seonsaeng Munjip, Songja Daejeon and Beonamjip. The foundation said Americans who worked in South Korea in the early 1970s bought them as souvenirs and took them to the United States.  The Cheokam Seonsaeng Munjip woodblock, carved in 1917, was used to print the collected works of Kim Do Hwa (1825-1912), who served as a militia leader in the Andong area during the Eulmi Righteous Army uprising in 1895. The foundation said there were originally more than 1,000 related woodblocks. In 2015, 19 Confucian woodblocks were collectively inscribed on UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register as “Korean Confucian Woodblocks.” In 2019, with support from Riot Games, the foundation bought one matching woodblock at a German auction and donated it to the Korea Studies Advancement Center; it has now received another of the same type.  The foundation said the woodblock had been purchased from an antique dealer in South Korea by Alan Gordon (1933-2011), an American who worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Korea mission in the early 1970s, and taken to the United States. After his death, his wife, Tamra Gordon, kept it and in 2025 inquired about donating it to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art; it was then transferred to the foundation’s U.S. office and returned through the donation.  The Songja Daejeon woodblock, carved in 1926, was used for a compilation of writings, a chronology and other materials related to Song Si Yeol (1607-1689), a Confucian scholar of the late Joseon period. The work was first published in 1787. The foundation said all the original woodblocks were destroyed by the Japanese military in 1907, and descendants and Confucian scholars recarved them in 1926. The 11,023 recarved woodblocks were designated a Daejeon city tangible cultural heritage in 1989. The foundation said Alan Gordon bought this woodblock from an antique dealer in South Korea and gave it to his younger sister; it was returned along with the Cheokam Seonsaeng Munjip woodblock.  The Beonamjip woodblock, carved in 1824, was used to print the collected works of Chae Je Gong (1720-1799), a civil official who played a central role in state affairs during the reigns of King Yeongjo and King Jeongjo. Of 1,159 woodblocks, only 358 survive, the foundation said. Like the Cheokam Seonsaeng Munjip woodblock, it was included in the 2015 UNESCO Memory of the World inscription.  The foundation said an American who worked in South Korea in the early 1970s bought the woodblock from an antique dealer, took it to the United States and gave it to the family of Kim Eun Hye, a Korean American. After the foundation’s U.S. office confirmed the background and proposed a donation, Kim agreed, and the woodblock was donated and returned with the others.  * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-02-09 09:21:00

Hyundai Wia Debuts at Saudi Arabia’s WDS 2026 With Vehicle-Mounted Firepower Systems Hyundai Wia is showcasing vehicle-mounted firepower systems at one of the Middle East’s largest defense exhibitions. The company said Sunday it is taking part in the World Defense Show (WDS) 2026, being held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Feb. 8-12 local time. WDS is one of the region’s biggest defense industry exhibitions. This year’s event drew about 750 companies from 45 countries. Hyundai Wia is operating a standalone booth at the show for the first time. Hyundai Wia displayed full-scale vehicle-based firepower systems, led by a “lightweight 105mm self-propelled howitzer” that mounts an existing 105mm howitzer on a small tactical vehicle. The company said it is more than half the weight of a wheeled self-propelled howitzer currently deployed by South Korea’s military, improving mobility, and has a maximum range of 18 kilometers. For faster fire control and ammunition transport in the field, the system is designed to operate with a fire-control vehicle and an ammunition carrier. It can also be airlifted by helicopter to an operational area, the company said. Hyundai Wia also exhibited a mock-up of a vehicle-mounted 81mm mortar. Using an automatic emplacement method, it cuts setup time from five minutes to 10 seconds and reduces the crew from five to three, the company said. It is designed to be operated like a conventional 81mm mortar when vehicle use is restricted. The company also introduced a remote-controlled weapon station, or RCWS. It displayed a full-scale small RCWS fitted with a widely used 7.62mm machine gun, and a mock-up of a medium RCWS that can mount a 12.7mm machine gun and a 40mm automatic grenade launcher. Hyundai Wia said it has added an AI-based auto-tracking algorithm across its RCWS lineup to detect and identify targets more precisely and quickly. Also on display was a tactical-vehicle-based anti-drone integrated defense system, or ADS, combining “soft-kill” electronic jamming to disable drones and “hard-kill” engagement using an RCWS, the company said. Hyundai Wia said it plans to use the exhibition to expand exports of artillery systems to Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern markets. “It is meaningful to open a standalone booth for the first time at WDS, the largest defense exhibition in the Middle East,” a company official said. “We will showcase Hyundai Wia’s defense technology across various regions, including the Middle East, and continue full-scale order-winning efforts in overseas markets.”* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-02-09 09:09:00

South Korea to Offer Youth Culture Pass Worth Up to 200,000 Won for Shows, Exhibits and Movies South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Arts Council Korea said Monday they will issue a “Youth Culture and Arts Pass” to people born in 2006 and 2007 who turn 19 or 20 this year. The pass can be used immediately to book performances, exhibitions and movies through partner ticketing platforms and theaters, including NOL Ticket, YES24, Ticketlink, Melon Ticket, Megabox, Lotte Cinema and CGV. Applications open Feb. 25. Launched in 2024 to help young people become active cultural consumers, the program will cover those born from Jan. 1, 2006, to Dec. 31, 2007. Eligible applicants are South Korean youths living in the country who did not use Youth Culture and Arts Pass points in 2025. After applying, youths living in the Seoul metropolitan area — including Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon — will receive 150,000 won in points, while those outside the capital region will receive 200,000 won. Passes will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis within quotas set for each of the nation’s 17 provinces and major cities, and issuance may close early depending on local demand. Unlike previous years, when users had to choose one ticketing outlet in advance, points can now be used across all seven partners to book musicals, classical performances, concerts, exhibitions and movies. Movie use is capped at two visits in the capital region and four outside it, regardless of price. Applications will be accepted through June 30 on the official website after users sign up for an account. Applicants can check issuance status and support amounts in the “My Page” section. The pass is valid through Dec. 31. However, passes issued by June 30 will be disabled starting Aug. 1 if they are not used at least once by July 31. Unused funds will be reclaimed, and the ministry said it plans additional issuance in the second half of the year to expand access. ‘Youth Culture and Arts Pass’ users to get ticket discounts at national arts groups and more; Website to offer information on major performances, exhibitions and films National arts organizations, including the National Symphony Orchestra, and local governments such as Incheon will offer ticket discounts to pass users. Eligible events include the National Symphony Orchestra’s “Sibelius, Symphony No. 2” (March 7), the National Theater Company of Korea’s “Sammaegyeong” (March 12-April 5), the Korea National Ballet’s “Swan Lake” (April 7-12), the Seoul Arts Center’s “2026 Seoul Arts Center Opera ” (July 22-26), Incheon’s play (March 7), Daegu’s “2026 Planned Opera ” (March 27-28), and Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province’s play (March 27-28). Discount rates vary by performance, and details on participating organizations and events will be available on the official website starting Feb. 25. The website and social media channels will also provide information on performances, exhibitions and events that can be booked with the pass. * Instagram (@youthpass19), KakaoTalk Channel (search “청년 문화예술패스”) Jeong Hyang Mi, director general for arts and culture policy at the ministry, said the program expanded both eligibility and where the pass can be used so young people can enjoy arts and culture as part of daily life in their communities. She said the ministry also worked to increase attractions such as high-quality touring performances and exhibitions. “The ministry will continue to pursue policies that help young people build cultural sensitivity and creativity so they can grow as audiences and leaders of K-art,” she said. * This article has been translated by AI. 2026-02-09 09:06:00

Hyundai Glovis Expands Into K-Beauty Logistics With New Fulfillment Service Hyundai Glovis is moving to capture the fast-growing K-beauty logistics market.  The company said Sunday it has signed a third-party logistics, or 3PL, contract with The Skin Factory, which operates the hair and body care brand KUNDAL, and has begun full-scale operations. Under the deal, Hyundai Glovis will handle the entire logistics process for The Skin Factory’s products, from receiving and storage to packing and shipping. The company said it is launching a fulfillment service that provides a one-stop, integrated solution covering storage, packaging and delivery.  Hyundai Glovis will provide fulfillment for domestic customers through an advanced automated logistics center in the Seoul metropolitan area. The center is equipped with the latest automation, including automated guided vehicles, enabling fast and accurate processing for e-commerce orders. It also supports safe storage and efficient shipping tailored to beauty products. Hyundai Glovis said it also plans to support The Skin Factory’s overseas expansion by providing end-to-end export logistics, including cross-border direct-to-consumer shipping, overseas customs clearance, and air and sea export services. The company is betting on growth in K-beauty logistics. U.S. market research firm Allied Market Research forecasts the global K-beauty market will reach $13.9 billion (about 20 trillion won) in 2027.   A Hyundai Glovis official said the company can provide flexible and stable logistics services even when volumes fluctuate, backed by advanced automation. The official said Hyundai Glovis aims to boost clients’ productivity and help cut logistics costs, while serving as a partner responsible for both domestic distribution and export logistics.* This article has been translated by AI. 2026-02-09 08:51:00