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With the advent of the artificial intelligence (AI) era, another field that has gained increased attention is the Internet of Things (IoT). This technology refers to all devices used in daily life or industrial sites being connected to a network, exchanging and interacting with data.

However, the domestic IoT market heavily relies on foreign products, making it difficult for local developers to receive technical support. Especially with the emergence of security issues, the necessity for a domestic IoT ecosystem is growing.

‘NUCODE (CEO Lee Kwan-hyung)’ is a startup that has emerged to solve these problems. By introducing the low-power IoT module ‘NU Module’ and a development environment accessible to non-experts, it helps anyone easily develop IoT products or services. The background of CEO Lee Kwan-hyung, who returned to Korea after working as an automotive parts design engineer in Germany, and the innovative technology of NUCODE were discussed.

- What motivated you to start a business in the IoT field? Is there a special meaning behind the company name NUCODE?

: Originally, I was a mechanical engineer designing automotive parts in Germany, but during the COVID-19 period, I prepared to start a business in remote healthcare. However, electronics and computers are entirely different, and the procedures were too complex. Even with an idea, the process from prototype production to mass production was not easy.

During this time, I learned about global module companies, but there were no noticeable brands in Korea making low-power modules or Bluetooth IoT modules. Domestic engineers had no choice but to use foreign modules, which made it difficult to receive technical support, and the documents were all in English or Chinese, preventing them from utilizing the functions fully.

The name ‘NUCODE’ is derived from the recent trend ‘No-code’ (a development method that allows software creation without programming knowledge). It embodies the idea of enabling those unfamiliar with coding to easily develop IoT integration services.

- What are the key features of NUCODE's core solution? And what specific problems can it solve?

: We are creating an ultra-small low-power IoT module called ‘NU Module’. It is a device module that can be used with low power while utilizing Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. It operates in the unlicensed frequency bands of 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz. Through this module, various products and services with diverse IoT functions can be developed.

It is particularly specialized for situations where power supply is challenging, such as small devices that need long battery life or real-time data collection equipment used in the field. It can increase power efficiency by about four times compared to competitors. To put it simply, a 1-hour battery earphone can become a 4-hour earphone.

This performance must be realized in all areas of hardware, firmware, and software. If any part is missing, low power cannot be achieved. As a company that handles hardware, firmware, and software, we were able to apply designs that consider the mass production of customer products.


- I heard that you provide not just modules but also a development environment. What is it?

: To properly utilize low-power modules, the complexity of product design increases. Our focus is on enabling those encountering it for the first time to design well. We have built a development environment called ‘NU-Works’, which includes an AI model that generates system architecture diagrams. It is a proprietary model combining LLM (Large Language Model) with our data.

Bluetooth functions are often integrated into apps or the web, but the development process for such functions is not very simple. We provide prototype development boards and convenient programming tools that even beginners can easily use. Especially, we have developed compatible programs to make it easy to use our products even in environments preferred by coding novices.

In October this year, we held a Bluetooth-based Vibe Coding Hackathon (a type of competition), where all participants, not just developers, successfully developed a Bluetooth integration app within three hours. There were planners, elementary school students, university designers, entrepreneurs, and even tax accountants. It proved that with tools like the trending ChatGPT, products at a level ready for mass production can be developed very easily.

- Recently, security issues have been discovered in some IoT products. Can NUCODE's solution address these issues?

: Recently, many hidden security issues have been emerging in modules. A backdoor (hidden malicious code) was found in a module from a famous overseas company, which was widely applied in home cameras distributed in Korea. A backdoor in a home camera means video hacking is possible. Since it is a significant issue, it is important for CCTV or home camera businesses to find alternative modules and upgrade their products in advance.

Generally, companies selling modules domestically are often distributors of foreign companies. However, in the case of NUCODE, we develop directly and hold the source code internally, and we also design the development boards ourselves. In a situation where there are not many domestically developed modules and boards, we believe we can be an alternative.

We are also officially collaborating with Norway's ‘Nordic Semiconductor’, a global leader in the low-power Bluetooth field. Our products will be showcased at the Nordic Semiconductor booth at the AIoT exhibition this year and the CES exhibition next year.

- Have you developed any other products besides modules and development environments?

: Through the unlicensed frequency demonstration project ordered by the Ministry of Science and ICT, we developed ‘Hoducam (tentative name)’, an AI low-power CCTV for field use. The development took about six months. It is a device capable of recognizing vehicle numbers through on-device AI (AI processing on the device itself).

Currently, the most costly part of installing CCTV in parking lots or fields is data cable construction and power cable construction. Our product eliminates all these, implementing a completely wireless system. The CCTVs communicate with each other, sharing not only power but also data wirelessly.

The battery efficiency is also excellent. Even if solar charging is not possible, it can operate for about four days to a week. With a solar charging system, it is designed to automatically recover once charged, even if the system goes down. It is characterized by implementing so-called ‘maintenance-free’, minimizing management work.

Hoducam (tentative name) is scheduled for commercialization starting next year. This year, foreign-made CCTVs have been a significant controversy in Korea, and it is a security, high-performance camera module and product that can replace such items.


- What has been the most challenging aspect of running the company?

: Recently, domestic education curriculums for embedded systems or IoT have largely disappeared, making it difficult to find suitable talent in a globally competitive market. Although there are quite a few skilled developers in Korea among the seniors who have made Korea an IT powerhouse, it is hard to find young talent domestically, and even if they exist, they are often abroad.

However, we are relatively fortunate. The executives at NUCODE are composed of young, talented engineers who are hard to find domestically, each excelling in their respective fields. I would like to describe them as hidden masters leading the future of embedded and physical AI. Additionally, NUCODE is also committed to fostering IoT talent through hackathons and webinars. We are always open to collaboration with specialized high schools, universities, domestic robot competitions, and influencers.

- How are investment attraction and commercialization progressing?

: We founded the company in June last year, received investment from Korea Investment Accelerator within three months, and were selected for the TIPS (Tech Incubator Program for Startups) by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups in December. These are achievements made within six months of founding. This year, we are focusing on system advancement, and we have plans for investment attraction early next year.

- How helpful was SeoulTech's Global Competency Enhancement Program for Early Startups?

: We have utilized not only the Early Startup Package Program but also other programs conducted by SeoulTech's Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation. The school has a lot of equipment and is actively engaged in industry-academic cooperation, which certainly creates synergy with us.

In particular, SeoulTech helped with the hackathon, and we received various support such as securing networking with investors and legal consulting. The diverse infrastructure possessed by SeoulTech is impressive. We have greatly benefited from utilizing this for our business.

- Are there any future plans or additional messages you would like to convey?

: Just as NVIDIA has both the hardware GPU and the platform CUDA, NUCODE aims to create such a platform in the MCU (Microcontroller) field. Most low-power IoT operates based on MCU and RTOS (Real-Time Operating System). Rather than designing IP directly, we are working on making it easy to design modules by collaborating with global brands and integrating various technologies well.

Additionally, NUCODE plans to discover various partners, including LTE module companies, to create a platform where comprehensive module-based products can be made, adding sensors, apps, and dashboards. If a domestic ecosystem is built that rivals overseas companies like Xiaomi, Tuya, and TP-Link, anyone can easily create products with price competitiveness and completeness. At the center of this will be NUCODE's low-power technology and AI-based no-code development environment.

IT Donga Reporter Kim Young-woo (pengo@itdonga.com)

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