The demand-responsive mobility platform company Studio Galileo (CEO Hyunmyung Kim) announced that it has co-hosted the ‘Chiang Mai Alive 2025’ event with Thailand's social impact travel platform company Eiiga & iChiangmai (CEO Phanawat Kochum) and has officially entered the global tourism mobility market.

Studio Galileo launched the tourism-oriented DRT (demand-responsive transport) service ‘RIKAride’ in Chiang Mai, Thailand, last May and successfully completed a three-month pilot operation. ‘RIKAride’ emphasizes the core value of the newly coined term ‘Travelity’ in the tourism industry. ‘Travelity’ is a concept combining ‘Travel’ and ‘Mobility’, representing a new tourism trend that offers the entire travel process as a complete experience beyond mere transportation. Studio Galileo aims to present this concept to the premium tourism market, creating new customer experiences through differentiated mobility services.

Over the past three months, ‘RIKAride’ has operated a pilot service primarily for female and family tourists departing from Korea, and will begin renovations in November for a full-scale service expansion. Through this strategic partnership, Studio Galileo plans to develop new services in collaboration with Thailand's Eiiga & iChiangmai and prepare to expand to major tourist destinations in Southeast Asia beyond Chiang Mai.

In Thailand, where the tourism industry is a key national industry, there is great anticipation for this Korea-Thailand startup collaboration. The strategic cooperation announcement event ‘Chiang Mai Alive 2025’ held locally in Chiang Mai on the 26th of last month was attended by high-ranking officials from both countries' governments and institutions, including the Vice Governor of Chiang Mai Province, the Deputy Mayor of Chiang Mai, the Deputy Governor of the Bank of Thailand Northern Office, the Director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Honorary Consul of Chiang Mai of the Republic of Korea, and the Director of the Korea Tourism Organization's Thailand office.

The event drew attention as a starting point for global solidarity among social enterprises and the creation of a sustainable tourism ecosystem, beyond mere business cooperation. The Bank of Thailand provided the event venue free of charge to commemorate the start of Korea-Thailand social enterprise cooperation, and Kim Jung-tae, CEO of MYSC, a leading domestic social enterprise nurturing institution and investor in Studio Galileo, shared the social values and visions of both companies.

Additionally, Studio Galileo held business cooperation meetings with local major hotels and resorts such as the Chiang Mai Hotel Spa Association, Thailand's leading shopping mall operator One Nimman Group, Horizon Village and Resort, and the luxury hotel Onsen at Moncham. Based on this, the company plans to establish a new service model across the Thai tourism mobility industry and expand its business throughout the Southeast Asian tourism market.

Studio Galileo's entry into Thailand is grounded in the experience and know-how accumulated over the past three years by participating in the ‘Regional Tourism Transportation Improvement (Tourism DRT) Public Contest’ organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization. Based on these achievements, the company plans to participate in ‘SWITCH’, Asia's largest startup event, held in Singapore this October to introduce the business model of ‘RIKAride’.

Studio Galileo CEO Hyunmyung Kim stated, “The strategic partnership with Eiiga & iChiangmai is significant as it is a rare case of a Korean startup directly entering the global tourism market,” and added, “By providing a new experience that combines mobility and tourism, we will realize the ‘Travelity’ vision and contribute to the development of the tourism industry in Thailand and Southeast Asia.”

Phanawat Kochum, CEO of Eiiga & iChiangmai, also emphasized, “The meeting of a Korean technology-based social startup and a Thai local social travel platform is a historic event,” and added, “Through the cooperation of the two countries, we will have the opportunity to create true social impact in the tourism and mobility industries, which will be an innovative service that greatly contributes to the development of the regional economy and tourism ecosystem.”

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