The Art of Empathy: Three Stories to Solve Life's Toughest Challenges

On May 28th, the ‘Changgu Program 7th Term Media Roundtable’ held at Google Korea headquarters near Yeoksam Station vividly demonstrated how technological innovation can warmly transform people's lives. Three founders unfolded their journeys, which stemmed not just from technological passion but from a deep affection for humanity. Karen Tee, Google's Vice President of Platform and Devices Partnerships for Asia Pacific, looked back on the seven-year journey of the Changgu Program with pride. Since 2019, 177.2 billion won in investment has been attracted for 660 startups, and particularly, participating companies in the 6th term achieved remarkable results with a 60% increase in sales and a 130% increase in export revenue compared to the previous year. In this year's 7th term, 46% of selected companies are AI enterprises, emphasizing a shift towards professional AI solutions that solve real problems, beyond mere functional implementation. **A Miracle of 177.2 Billion Won, a Story of Technology for People** **Kim Jung-eun, CEO of Jamjam Therapeutics**, embarked on her entrepreneurial journey, keenly feeling the difficulties of rehabilitation treatment as the mother of a child with cerebral palsy. The ‘Jamjam400’ she developed precisely analyzes hand movements using only a tablet or smartphone, without separate equipment, and provides customized rehabilitation exercises. It created a miracle where intensive therapy costing millions of won enabled a child to make a fist in just one week through a game, and allowed up to 380 training sessions for the cost of one in-person therapy session, reducing rehabilitation costs by 22 times. Children setting their own alarms and rehabilitating as if playing a game proved that AI is not just a technology, but a tool of hope. More children will be reached with ‘Pinkfong and Jamjam Friends,’ set to launch in July. **Kim Jun-bae, CEO of iClaw**, noticed the problem of oral healthcare inequality while looking at the teeth of a friend's child with a physical disability. He aimed to change the reality where nearly half the population receives dental care, yet low-income individuals, people with disabilities, and the elderly are more severely exposed to oral diseases, using AI. The ‘Homeden’ app diagnoses over 10 oral diseases with more than 98% accuracy, based on over 10 million dental data points labeled by dentists with 20 years of experience. It provides a second opinion to patients and pre-treatment plans to medical staff, and his sincerity in pursuing "pride over profit" shone through, especially with free check-ups in vulnerable areas lacking dental infrastructure. **Kwon Seo-hyun, CEO of Munice**, developed ‘Nightly’ in the process of overcoming her own insomnia. She sought a sustainable solution, having even experienced hair loss due to medication side effects. Nightly analyzes the user's mood and activity history to provide personalized monaural beat combinations, inducing deep sleep through brainwave entrainment. Within two years of its launch, it surpassed 800,000 cumulative subscribers and 7 million hours of sleep service, firmly holding the #1 spot in the Health & Fitness category of the Korean App Store. It proved its potential in the global market by ranking 8th in the Health & Fitness category of the Japanese App Store in its first month of entry. All three companies had a clear vision for global expansion. Jamjam Therapeutics plans to present papers at European and US academic conferences and expand clinical partnerships, Munice aims for the US market leveraging its success in Japan, and iClaw intends to target overseas markets lacking dental infrastructure. What lay hidden behind the complex algorithms in these founders' stories was ultimately a deep understanding of people. The sight of children with disabilities smiling brightly and playing, the moment someone suffering from insomnia falls into a deep sleep, the scene of a dental-phobic patient receiving a check-up with peace of mind. Thus, the most beautiful landscapes created by technology have always blossomed from human-centered values. On the future map they are drawing, there were no borders, no barriers.