Kakao Revives Jeju Village as 19 Shops Rally Around Sehwa-ri

* Editor's note: AI PRISM (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an AI-based personalized news recommendation and summary service developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and provides six tailored news items for each reader type.

1. Cacao Aroma Fills a 'Departing Village' as Visitors Flock and Big Firms Take Notice

- Key summary: Kakao Family, a local company in Sehwa-ri, Gujwa-eup, Jeju, is reviving the village's commercial district through its cacao brand "Cocoha." Kim Jung-a, CEO of Kakao Family, said that while growing cacao in Guatemala, watching Indigenous residents leave their hometowns brought to mind Jeju's rural areas. Last year the company imported about 7 tons of cacao, and this year's target is 20 tons, the second-largest scale after Lotte, the largest importer in the country. About 70% of sales come from online, with first-half revenue of 1.6 billion won and an annual target of 3 billion won. In addition, 19 village shops took part in a joint funding campaign on Naver Happybean, raising about 125 million won in 25 days.

2. Rugged Stone Paths Are No Match: 'Sunra-bot' Reports for Duty at Seooreung

- Key summary: The Royal Palaces and Tombs Center of the Korea Heritage Service conducted an AI patrol robot trial at Seooreung on the 25th to build a smart security system for national heritage sites. The robot deployed was the "LKR-T1," a patrol robot for irregular indoor and outdoor environments developed by the startup LK Robotics, which autonomously drove a roughly 200-meter section from Myeongneung to the ceremonial house. The entire trial route runs about 2.6 kilometers, and a single patrol takes about 50 minutes. Kim Seung-hoon, CEO of LK Robotics, explained that the LKR-T1 can clear steps up to 20 centimeters high and can also drive up slopes of about 30 degrees. On-site demonstrations that day also included fire detection using a thermal imaging camera and a response to a visitor collapse.

3. 3,403 Entries From 97 Countries: GAMFF Becomes a 'World Stage'

- Key summary: GAMFF, organized by North Gyeongsang Province, will be held over three days starting the 3rd of next month in Gumi, Pohang and Gyeongsan. This year's AI film competition drew 3,403 entries from 97 countries, more than triple last year's 1,075, while overseas entries surged from 72 to 1,587. North Gyeongsang Province cited expanded international cooperation as one reason for the rise in overseas entries, pointing to a memorandum of understanding signed with the Beijing Animation and Game Industry Association in May. Aims Media, an AI startup, has grown from four to 22 employees since winning the grand prize last year and is now working on production collaborations with broadcasters. The event will feature an awards ceremony for the competition, which has a total prize pool of 100 million won, along with a technology and investment presentation session for innovative AI companies and an export consultation session involving 20 overseas buyers.

4. Viva Republica Issues Additional 33 Billion Won in Private Bonds, Raising 220 Billion Won This Year Alone

- Key summary: Viva Republica, the operator of Toss, issued 33 billion won in five-year private bonds (privately placed corporate bonds) on the 14th of this month. The coupon rate was set at 6.06% per year, and the company returned to the corporate bond market less than a month after issuing 187 billion won the previous month. As a result, this year's private bond issuance has risen to a total of 220 billion won, and cumulative funds raised, including the first 50 billion won issued in December last year, reach 270 billion won. A company official explained that the purpose was "to secure stable liquidity and enhance financial flexibility."

5. Trump Goes Ahead: Professional Visa's '143 Million Won Bill' Pushed Through

- Key summary: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security published in the Federal Register a proposed rule imposing a fee of $103,265 (about 143 million won) on applicants for the H-1B professional work visa. The cost is borne by the company employing the applicant, up to 50 times higher than the previous range of around $2,000 to $5,000. The Department of Homeland Security plans to collect comments for 30 days before finalizing the rule late this year, with a plan to raise $8.8 billion (about 12 trillion won) annually through the rule to fund immigration policy. The Wall Street Journal noted that the rule would hurt not only Big Tech, which has hired AI engineers and semiconductor design personnel, but startups as well.

6. K-Game First-Half Overseas Revenue Hits 6 Trillion Won, Reaching 80% of Last Year's Total in Half a Year

- Key summary: The average share of overseas revenue at five companies — Nexon, Krafton (259960), Netmarble (251270), NCSoft and Pearl Abyss (263750) — topped 70% for the first time in the first half of this year. Their first-half overseas revenue reached 6.057 trillion won, up nearly 60% from 3.7981 trillion won in the same period last year and equal to 80% of last year's full-year overseas revenue of 7.9593 trillion won. Nexon lifted its overseas share on the North American and European success of "Arc Raiders," while NCSoft did so through the consolidation of the European platform company "JustPlay." Meanwhile, as growth in domestic game industry revenue slowed to the 1% range last year, the shift toward global markets away from an MMORPG-centered structure appears to be accelerating.