ⓒ GB SOFT

Now it’s time to take a look at a Korean business bringing about changes in the global economy with some new ideas. 

Today, we’re going to introduce you to GB Soft, a developer of a solution that measures biosignals in a contactless way. Let’s hear from company CEO Park Gi-beom. 

GB Soft is a developer of the world’s first non-contact bio signal measurement software based on image analysis. GB stands for global best, representing the company’s hope of becoming the world’s best in the market. We’re working with major companies in construction, life, medicine and automobiles. Its ultimate business model is to create a platform that connects different businesses. 

These days, people manage their health in daily life, thanks to monitoring devices in the form of a wearable watch, patch or ring that can collect their health information in real-time. 

An 80-year-old woman in Germany was actually saved by a smartwatch. Having shown typical angina symptoms, she got an electrocardiogram at a local university medical center. Doctors found no problem with her heart condition. But her abnormal heartbeat was recorded in her smartwatch, and the woman received timely treatment based on the data. This case was introduced in the European Heart Journal in May last year. 

Like this, healthcare devices automatically check the body conditions of the users in everyday life. That is, more and more people are now preventing potential diseases in their daily lives, rather than visiting the doctor only after they have symptoms. 

GB Soft’s solution is definitely worth mentioning. It has developed technology to measure biosignals using a camera. 

The U.S., Europe and China have conducted extensive research on this technology, but they have yet to produce relevant products on a commercial scale. That’s because it is not easy to analyze sensitive biosignals, such as a pulse and blood pressure, based solely on-camera image analysis. GB Soft was able to do such a challenging job. 

If you simply look at a camera, the camera recognizes your face and automatically measures your pulse, blood pressure and oxygen saturation. We have two rivals overseas—one in the U.S. and the other in Israel. Large companies both in Korea and abroad often compare us to those two firms. But they eventually choose us because our solution is more accurate and can measure biosignals much, much faster, compared to those provided by our competitors. 

GB Soft’s solution is different from conventional, attachment-type bio signal measuring systems. Therefore, it is free from worries about cross-contamination, drawing greater attention in the pandemic era. Users don’t need a separate sensor or equipment so older people and children can use it without difficulty. It does not require a high-performance camera, either. A laptop camera or a mobile phone camera would work just fine. The system can measure pulse, blood pressure, oxygen saturation and drowsiness fast—only in six to 20 seconds. What is better, it boasts high accuracy. Measurement of pulse and oxygen saturation is over 98 percent accurate, while blood pressure, 95 percent. 

It sounds like this amazing technology can be found in the far distant future. But it has already been introduced in construction sites in Korea.

ⓒ GB SOFTIn construction sites, the solution is used to check the workers’ attendance and manage their safety. It will be installed in an apartment complex to be built by a large construction company in Korea in the second half of this year. And now, a major platform company in Korea is selling robots embedded with our software. Also, some foreign companies plan to sell robots and apps featuring our software from the second half of the year.

Residents in the new apartment complex to be completed in the latter half of the year can manage their health simply by facing the camera for a moment without the hassles of using particular measuring systems. Discussions are underway about real-time communication with doctors in case that any unusual signs are shown.  

GB Soft’s solution can also check the health conditions of not only the driver but the passenger as well. The future auto market, characterized by self-driving vehicles, will definitely need this feature. 

In this way, the solution can be applied to a variety of areas, including industrial safety, mobility and living convenience. It is little wonder that various industries are showing keen interest in GB Soft. 

We won the Minister of SMEs and Startups Award and the Excellent Startup Award last year. We haven’t engaged in any activity to draw investment so far, but we’ve decided to put large companies in Korea and overseas on the list of our shareholders from the second half of the year. In addition to investment attraction, we’re collaborating with eight out of the 10 largest companies in Korea. 

GB Soft’s innovation doesn’t end here. It will continue with its research, planning to expand the measurement scope to blood sugar levels and alcohol intake. 

It also considers incorporating AI technology into the bio signal analysis to provide a new service that predicts and monitors abnormal signs. 

The company began to export its products overseas last year. It aims to find more markets outside Korea through the establishment of overseas corporations in the U.S. and Japan and to post sales worth 9 million US dollars this year. 

Our goal is to hold an unchallenged position in this field as a global leader. We found that companies in the U.S. and Israel were benefiting from their brand recognition, even though our technology stands out above theirs. We hope to remove this preconceived notion and make GB Soft the first thing that comes to people’s mind in this area. 

High-tech devices capable of monitoring health conditions around the clock can detect problems that doctors fail to find quickly. Such devices are expected to become an essential part of our lives. With good health becoming increasingly important, GB Soft hopes to serve as a family doctor for the public. Its innovative solution helps people manage their health in a smarter way.