Samsung Electronics to Showcase ‘C-Lab Inside’ and ‘C-Lab Outside’ Start-ups at CES 2021

Four projects from C-Lab Inside and seventeen startups from C-Lab Outside to be showcased at world’s biggest technology event

UK, London – January 6, 2021 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.  – Samsung Electronics today announced that it will be showcasing its C-Lab projects and C-Lab Outside startups at CES 2021 from January 11 through 14. Samsung will unveil four exciting projects in progress from its in-house venture program C-Lab Inside. Seventeen startups supported by the C-Lab Outside, Samsung’s startup acceleration program, will participate in the event as well.

Given the lack of opportunities startups have had in participating in in-person industry exhibitions amid the pandemic in 2020, Samsung is supporting the virtual participation of the startups at this year’s CES to help them attract potential investors and buyers. Also exhibiting at CES for the first time this year are local startups incubated by Samsung in collaboration with Daegu Center for Creative Economy & Innovation and Gyeong-buk Center for Creative Economy & Innovation.

C-Lab Inside: Four projects catering to unique consumer lifestyles to be exhibited

C-Lab Inside, which began in 2012, is an in-house idea incubation program that encourages and nurtures innovative ideas from Samsung employees. This will be the sixth consecutive year C-Lab is participating in CES. The C-Lab Inside projects to be unveiled this year focuses on personalised products and services catering to diverse lifestyles. Product marketability and customer responses will be gauged during the exhibition to enhance and further advance the projects.

The four C-Lab Inside projects are:

• EZCal, automated TV picture quality calibration application for cinema-level viewing quality;
• Air Pocket, portable oxygen storage device;
• Scan&Dive, IoT device & solution for fabric classification and optimal care recommendation;
• And Food&Sommelier, a service for finding optimal food & wine pairing.

C-Lab Outside: From AI to healthcare and entertainment, seventeen startups ready for the global market

Created in October 2018, C-Lab Outside is a startup acceleration program to vitalise the startup ecosystem in South Korea. Local startup incubation programs by Daegu Center and Gyeong-buk Center for Creative Economy & Innovation are also run as part of C-Lab Outside.

Startups enrolled in the C-Lab Outside programs are provided with office workspace, expert mentoring by Samsung employees, opportunities to participate in global IT exhibitions, investor relations and financial support.

Seventeen startups incubated in the past year will participate in CES 2021. The innovations exhibited by the companies include:

• AI-based personal information anonymization by Deeping Source,
• Real-life avatar creation through 3D scanning and VR/AR content creation solution by Flux Planet,
• Growth management device for children by Magpie Tech,
• Fashion design creation using image AI by Designovel.

C-Lab Outside startups plan to target the global market starting with CES 2021, meeting worldwide investors and buyers for potential new business opportunities.

Three startups spun off from C-Lab Inside recognised as innovation honorees at CES 2021

Samsung Electronics has been supporting high-potential C-Lab Inside projects to spin off as fully fledged startups since 2015. Three startups from C-Lab Inside—Luple, Bluefeel and Pixelro—await global partners and consumers at CES 2021.

CTA (The Consumer Technology Association) has also recognised the efforts from the Samsung startup incubation program and has chosen three startups from C-Lab Inside as innovation honorees of CES 2021 in the area of health and wellness.

The awardees are:

• Luple, which has developed a portable and artificial sunlight device;
• Breathings, a maker of an IoT device that easily manages respiratory health,
• Linkface, which has received the award for two consecutive years now with its neckband device that monitors breath and heart related bio signals.

“We hope that the startups from C-Lab Outside successfully prove their technological competencies and competitive edge on the global stage at CES and will find new business opportunities,” Inkuk Hahn, Corporate VP and Head of Creativity & Innovation Center at Samsung Electronics. “We are also excited about bringing C-Lab Inside projects to a wider audience. Encouraging forward-thinking innovations both inside and outside the company and providing opportunities for collaboration is crucial successful synergy in technology, which in the end will benefit everyone.”

Samsung Electronics has previously announced in 2018 that it would accelerate 300 Korean startups through C-Lab Outside and 200 projects through C-Lab Inside for the next 5 years.

Appendix 1. C-Lab Inside Projects

Appendix 2. C-Lab Outside Startups