Sung-Roh Yoon the director of the 4^th industrial revolution committee, emphasized that “It is time to become the ‘pink penguin’ of the global market by making bolder revolutions to alter the paradigm of the digital industry”.

Director Yoon said on the 1^st of January during the new year’s address, "The previous year was a time where we could proudly verify the competitiveness of Korea’s soft power. TV series, including the ‘Squid Game’, computer games, webtoons, and other media created in Korea were successfully released.”

Director Yoon added that “There should be larger investments made into R&D, and more efforts should be made to create a solid environment for startup companies to prosper”, and that “during these processes, there should be close examinations of the regulations to verify that there are no unnecessary regulations, and if any were to be found, they should be promptly removed.”

Director Yoon further emphasized, “Efforts to genuinely be interested in matters such as social tensions and inequality, which could potentially be neglected, and discourses on social revolutions in education and workplaces should be made jointly by the private and the government sectors”. The following is the entirety of Director Yoon’s new year’s address.

Sung-Roh Yoon, the director of the 4^th industrial revolution committee. △ 1973 Seoul SNU ECE △ Stanford Ph.D. △ Intel senior researcher △ Professor at KU △ currently a professor at SNU

Fellow Koreans and those working hard for progress in Korea’s 4^th industrial revolution, the energetic and prosperous year of the black tiger has begun!

It does not need much elaboration to say that the previous year was a difficult year for all of us. Only with your sacrifice, warm concerns, and support, could we turn the crisis into an opportunity. We were able to manage the balance between disease control and economic progress during the pandemic to motivate the growth of Korea’s 4^th industrial revolution.

Thanks to the efforts of our citizens, we were able to achieve remarkable results in various fields last year, even in the midst of difficult times. We emerged as a major leader in digital innovation in global competition; we emerged 1^st in OECD digital government and infrastructure evaluation, and 2^nd in the ITU’s ICT development index. The last year was also a time when we were able to proudly verify the competitiveness of Korea’s soft power. We were able to create celebrated media content, including TV series such as ‘Squid Game’, computer games, and webtoons.

Also, on the other hand, in line with the government’s ambitious digital new deal policy to overcome the COVID-19 situation through digital transformation, the 4^th industrial revolution committee has become the national data control tower, and is currently actively proceeding with the Data 119 project, which will set guidelines for government-wide data policies.

We have been running towards our goals until now, almost to the point of being out of breath, but we cannot stop here. It is time to become the ‘pink penguin’ of the global market by making bolder revolutions to alter the paradigm of the digital industry. Penguins are black and white. Regardless of individual qualities, from an outsider’s point of view, every penguin in a waddle looks the same.

However, if a pink penguin were to be in the waddle, similar to outliers, it would be able to attract attention by being distinct from the average penguin to an unmatched degree. In the era of technological supremacy coexisting with COVID-19, we must continue to become the pink penguin and lead digital transformation through creative distinction from the average.

For this to work, under the principle of private sector initiative and government sector assistance, there should be larger investments made into R&D, and more efforts should be made to create a solid environment for startup companies to prosper. During these processes, there should be close examinations of the regulations to verify that there are no unnecessary regulations, and if any were to be found, they should be promptly removed. In addition, efforts to genuinely be interested in matters such as social tensions and inequality, which could potentially be neglected amidst fast-paced growth, and discourses on social revolutions in education and workplaces should be made jointly by the private and the government sectors.

In addition, we should look back on the achievements of the 4^th industrial revolution committee, which has been actively playing the role of the center of digital governance and the joint platform for the private sector and the government sector. We should reflect on our progress and look for new ways to effectively lead the spreading 4^th industrial revolution and digital transformation, and our role and vision in these revolutions.

There is a saying, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together”. If you were to go alone, the road will be simple, but if you were to go together, it becomes history. I urge you to gather support for Korea’s tomorrow of great leaps. The 4^th industrial revolution committee will always be together on that journey.

Although we are still standing on the road where we have never been before, I hope that this year will be a prosperous year of the black tiger, a year of prosperity where businesses and people can overcome this crisis and successfully achieve digital transformation as if riding on a tiger’s back, thereby growing and advancing together in all fields.

Thank you.

Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/community/news?bm=v&bbsidx=52115

Translated by: Do-Hyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr