Biotech company CG Bio announced on the 9th that CEO Yu Hyun-seung has been named one of the “50 Innovative Alumni of the College of Engineering from Gwanak” selected by the College of Engineering at Seoul National University.

According to CG Bio, the selection took into account contributions to technological innovation, social impact, and future value creation across industry, research, and academia.

The “50 Innovative Alumni of the College of Engineering from Gwanak” are chosen from among alumni who entered the College of Engineering at Seoul National University after the opening of the Gwanak Campus, based on criteria such as technological innovativeness, social ripple effects, and future growth potential. The final list was confirmed through a review by a selection committee comprising department representative faculty members and the college leadership, based on public recommendations.

While completing his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering (Inorganic Materials) at Seoul National University, Yu researched a synthetic method for calcium hydroxyapatite (CaHA), a main component of human bone, and new bioactive crystallized glass materials. The HA synthesis technology, which implemented a pore structure of 300–500 micrometers similar to human cancellous bone and over 99% interconnectivity, later became the foundation for CG Bio’s bone substitute technology and addressed the limitations of existing synthetic bone.

CG Bio explained that the experience of extending basic research into clinical practice by developing artificial bone (bone substitutes) through joint research with the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Seoul National University became the starting point for Yu’s subsequent research and management activities.

In 2000, while in the doctoral program, Yu founded BioAlpha with the goal of commercializing his research results. The company is the predecessor of today’s CG Bio. Since then, he has led the domestic commercialization of medical devices such as artificial bone (bone substitutes), vacuum-assisted wound dressings, bioactive crystallized glass–based interbody fusion implants, calcium fillers, and intracranial vascular stents.

According to CG Bio, the company has been pursuing regenerative medicine technology development and overseas commercialization centered on “NOVOSIS,” an orthopedic bone substitute based on bone morphogenetic protein. It signed a technology use and sales agreement with a local Japanese company, and the technology has received Breakthrough Device designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The company expects consolidated revenue of KRW 245.1 billion in 2025.

The spinal implant “NOVOMAX” was developed using high-strength bioactive glass-ceramic (BGS-7), applying ceramics research accumulated during Yu’s doctoral studies. The product has obtained approval from Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) and has since been supplied to the Japanese market. Collaboration is also under way with global medical device companies such as Johnson & Johnson MedTech.

Yu is currently expanding business areas into spinal therapeutic materials and tissue-regenerative medical devices by linking research and development, manufacturing, regulatory approval, and commercialization with CG Bio at the center.

Yu stated, “My research experience and engineering mindset developed at the College of Engineering at Seoul National University have formed the basis of all my current challenges,” adding, “I will continue to manage the company so that research can be used in the field and technology can translate into social value.”

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