I started my company in 1998, amidst the IMF foreign exchange crisis. While everyone considered it a difficult time, I saw it as a time when a new industry could emerge. This is what Kim In-hyun, CEO of Korea Spatial Information and Communication, said.
"At the time, I started a company on campus with the help of Hanyang University's Startup Support Center. Looking back, it was a small and humble beginning, but I was confident. I believed that maps would become data, not just paper, and that spatial information would become a core infrastructure for our nation and industry."
At the time, the venture boom was in full swing, and investment was booming. There were many invitations to invest. However, CEO Kim was hesitant to invest. While he clearly saw the potential for technology diffusion, he judged the market wouldn't open as quickly as expected.
"The digital map wasn't fully developed. Just having an engine doesn't open up a market; you need data to build on top of it. So, we focused on building the technology and infrastructure, and in 2000, we attracted investment, primarily from small businesses."
Initially, we focused strictly on research and development. At the time, spatial information was a field only a select few public institutions and researchers in Korea understood. Therefore, we believed following the path established by others would have no chance of success.
“From the beginning, we set out to create technology and build a spatial information system that fits our reality.”
Looking back over the past 27 years, there have been more than a few crises. Times when the market opened later than expected, times when technology was ahead of its time but commercialization was slow, times when internal personnel issues and technology leaks shook the business structure, and times when we even considered legal action against large corporations flashed before our eyes.
"The most difficult time was the period of restructuring when the company was rocked. I had to maintain the company while maintaining debt. As a manager, and on a personal level, it was an incredibly painful time."
We've learned something clear: buildings can disappear and people can leave, but technology and data remain. The company's long-accumulated spatial information technology and data assets ultimately sustained it. The domestic GIS market has long relied heavily on foreign solutions. However, CEO Kim believes that relying on foreign technologies for the core engine of maps and spatial information is risky in the long term.
"Spatial information isn't just software; it's a fundamental technology linked to land, transportation, administration, security, logistics, and urban management. That's why we've been developing our own GIS engine from the beginning."
Initially, we had software developed at Hanyang University's GIS Lab. However, it was difficult to call it a complete engine on its own. We used foreign engines like Arc/INFO to carry out the road name building numbering project in Gyeongju City, and we also developed a parallel processing solution for the open-source GRASS with the University of Seoul. Through these processes, we began developing our own engine in earnest. This path was not easy. We had to address everything from coordinate system processing, large-scale spatial data rendering, network analysis, spatial queries, 2D and 3D integration, and ensuring performance in a web environment.
"At the time, there were no reference books, and there weren't many domestic examples. Ultimately, I had to find my way, one step at a time."
At the time, imported engines were expensive, slow, and difficult to adapt to domestic environments. At a time when even 2D rendering wasn't readily available online, Korea Spatial Information and Communications (KGIS) decided to develop a 3D GIS that ran on the web. Following the Daegu subway disaster, the importance of disaster and underground facility management grew. Therefore, with the help of senior researchers at the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology and a network of research labs, they leveraged national research funding to develop a web-based Internet GIS.
"At the time, many people didn't believe 3D was running on the internet. So, we even joked, 'Wouldn't anyone believe it if it ran on our company's internal network?' and named the product IntraMap."
What sets Intramap apart is its design for solving real-world problems specific to Korea. While overseas solutions tend to be more general-purpose, Korea Spatial Information and Communications Corporation has developed a structure optimized for Korea's administrative system, road network, address system, public service methods, and rapid update requirements.
My interest in carbon neutrality stemmed from a research project on integrated urban ecosystem management at the Ministry of Environment, which my doctoral advisor participated in. At the time, the Ministry of Environment was pursuing a large-scale research and development project, and several institutions, including the Department of Landscape Architecture and the Graduate School of Environmental Studies at Seoul National University, the Department of Urban Engineering at Hanyang University, and the University of Seoul, collaborated on research into an integrated urban ecosystem management system.
"Through this process, I became clear that environmental issues are ultimately spatial issues. Carbon isn't something that floats abstractly in the air; it's emitted and managed in real spaces like buildings, roads, transportation, industrial facilities, and living spaces."
That's why CEO Kim recognized the need for spatial information-based carbon management early on. Korea Spatial Information & Communications (KSP) has been exploring integrated solutions based on spatial information that can measure, record, and verify carbon emissions at the city and residential area level. Many believe the COVID-19 map was the impetus for Everyone's Map, but its predecessor existed before that. KSP was developing a SaaS-type GIS called Moa Map, which would become the predecessor to Everyone's Map. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic struck. Early on, I heard about an individual who had created a patient location tracking system and looked into its implementation. However, upon closer inspection, I discovered that it barely incorporated any spatial information concepts.
"It was only a point-based representation of location, lacking actual movement paths, network-based tracking, or spatial relationship analysis. Seeing this, I decided it needed to be rebuilt into a proper spatial information-based system."
Therefore, leveraging our long-accumulated network analysis and spatial information technologies, we quickly developed a specialized patient tracking system. Beyond simple visualization, this system enabled us to understand infection routes and location relationships based on spatial networks. The service rapidly expanded. It evolved into a much larger platform, integrating with relevant public services like real-time pharmacy mask sales status and early election polling station information.
"Within two weeks of its launch, it exploded with global traffic and 500 million views. The response was so strong that it was practically a global service, surpassing the domestic market."
For the past 27 years, Korea Spatial Information and Communications (KSI) has implemented various public projects intertwined with the national spatial information system. What is particularly significant is its direct and indirect contribution to the establishment of the nation's core spatial information infrastructure. He emphasized, "I am proud of our role in establishing Korea's core spatial information integrated management system and the national standardized intramap-based road name address system, which was fragmented across multiple systems and resulted in significant budget waste in local areas."
Public projects aren't simply about winning contracts; they're about building national systems. This makes them incredibly rewarding. Some projects, while not readily apparent in the field, have a long-term impact on citizens' lives, administrative efficiency, and industrial competitiveness. The challenges are clear. Public projects require numerous considerations, including procedures and regulations, budget structures, and annual performance management. Sometimes, even when technology is advanced, systems and procurement structures lag behind. Surviving 27 years since its establishment in 1998 is no easy feat. This is especially true in public-market-focused industries like geospatial information, where data accumulation takes time and markets don't explode quickly.
"The secret to survival lies in three things: creating technology, believing in the value of data, and persevering with a long-term perspective rather than following short-term trends."
When competing with large corporations or international companies, the biggest challenge lies in the gaps in capital, brand, and sales capabilities. However, SMEs must instead compete with depth and persistence. Knowing the field, understanding domestic data structures, and thoroughly resolving customer issues are key differentiators.
"We had solved market problems one by one and had nearly taken control of the market, but due to human factors, we lost our technology and the market. Our colleagues, who were supposed to be protecting the rearguard, leaked our technology to large corporations and stole our market share."
Korea Spatial Information and Communication aims to establish itself as a spatial information platform company for the AI era, rather than a GIS construction company.
"AI thrives on data. Spatial data is key. As AI advances, the importance of spatial information will only grow."
What CEO Kim wants to improve is the perception that spatial information is reduced to the level of a standard background map. At the same time, he wants to address attitudes toward technology and industrial ethics.
"The spatial information industry is one that requires a long period of accumulating technology and data. Developing a single technology requires extensive research and field experience. However, in reality, problems arise where technology is copied or used without permission."
He believes, "It's important for both clients and the market to properly evaluate the value of technology and create an environment where companies that develop technology legitimately are protected." Only then can the industry grow healthily.
A founder who has dedicated 27 years to the spatial information industry, starting in the midst of the IMF foreign exchange crisis, is now building core infrastructure for the AI era with data. The entrepreneur's conviction that "maps are not just a service, but a national data infrastructure" will be a key factor in transforming the GIS industry, drawing attention to how it will transform the industry.
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