Drone AI Specialist Nearthlab Wins Jang Young-sil Award

Nearthlab Achieves 'IR52 Jang Young-shil Award' for Vision AI-based Drone Flight Control Technology Nearthlab, an innovative drone AI technology company, has once again proven the excellence of its unique vision AI-based flight control technology by winning the 106th IR52 Jang Young-shil Award, hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT. This award is a prestigious industrial technology award given to companies and research organizations possessing outstanding new technology products and research achievements. The core technology recognized by Nearthlab is its ability to accurately detect targets and autonomously generate optimal flight paths using only cameras mounted on drones, without the need for expensive LiDAR sensors. This is a fundamental element underlying all of Nearthlab's product lines, representing an innovative approach that simultaneously enhances cost-efficiency and technological sophistication. Notably, this technology first gained significant attention by being commercialized as the 'NearthWind Mobile' solution in the wind turbine inspection sector. Users can enable autonomous flight missions for common commercial drones simply by installing a mobile app, allowing anyone to perform precise inspections in a short amount of time without complex equipment or specialized operation. This contributes to solving the shortage of technical personnel in the energy industry and dramatically improving operational efficiency. It also allows for the replacement of tasks that previously required large industrial drones with small commercial drones, earning high praise for its practicality and scalability. Furthermore, the technology can be applied in regions where operating industrial drones was challenging due to security or customs restrictions, thus broadening its range of application. Nearthlab's technological prowess has been recognized not only domestically but also internationally, having received an Innovation Award in the 'Mobile Application & Software' category at CES 2022. Building on successful collaborations with global companies such as Siemens Gamesa, Vestas, and GE, Nearthlab's vision AI technology, developed beyond the wind power sector, is being applied to various products including its self-developed small AI drone 'AiDEN' and high-speed interceptor drone 'KAiDEN', serving as a crucial driving force for business expansion. Choi Jae-hyuk, CEO of Nearthlab, stated, "It is even more meaningful that our technology development and practical application for solving real-world problems on site have led to this award." He further expressed his ambition, "We will continue to strive so that Nearthlab's technology can consistently contribute to functioning effectively and enhancing safety and efficiency across various industrial sites."