Tampere, Finland’s second-largest city and a former industrial center, is undergoing significant infrastructure revitalization. The “Nokia Arena,” inaugurated three years ago, has become a flagship of this renewal. With a capacity of 15,000, it stands as Finland’s largest ice hockey venue and integrates a hotel, an indoor performance space, and a variety of restaurants. The arena showcases cutting-edge visual technology, including large-scale LEDs, transparent OLEDs, video walls, and commercial displays, all supplied by LG Electronics. The company is also assessing the potential of installing electric vehicle charging (EVC) stations and implementing robotic solutions in the city.
South Korean technology and electronics companies are increasingly targeting the global IT infrastructure sector. Both developed and emerging nations are expanding their use of IT-based solutions for essential urban infrastructure—spanning transportation, public safety, and other critical areas—to support urban renewal projects. This shift has created substantial opportunities for South Korean firms that can provide comprehensive IT solutions, including smart home appliances, artificial intelligence, and robotics. “While Korean companies face competition from low-cost Chinese manufacturers in the consumer electronics market, they possess a competitive advantage in international IT infrastructure projects, where they can handle end-to-end solutions from deployment to ongoing management,” an industry insider explained.
In late 2023, Samsung Electronics supplied its sustainable “Net Zero Home” solutions to the Brobyholm Smart City project near Stockholm, Sweden. This initiative, situated within the Stockholm metropolitan area, aims to establish a community of 2,000 energy-efficient homes. Samsung’s contributions included a diverse range of smart appliances, such as refrigerators, ovens, dishwashers, washers, and dryers. These appliances are connected through Samsung’s “SmartThings” platform, enabling integrated control and management.
Naver is also making strides in the global market through its digital twin technology, which creates virtual replicas of cities to support comprehensive urban planning. Since July, Naver has been engaged in a $100 million (approximately 140 billion won) project in Saudi Arabia to develop a digital twin platform. This technology will facilitate essential services, such as urban planning and flood simulations, in collaboration with a governmental agency, Korea Water Resources Corporation. A Naver spokesperson emphasized the versatility of 3D mapping, noting its potential applications in sectors like film production.
The momentum of South Korean companies expanding into the global IT infrastructure market has accelerated over the past two to three years. While smart city development began in the U.S. and Europe over a decade ago, recent investments by emerging nations have significantly expanded the market. The ASEAN bloc, for example, plans to develop 26 smart cities by 2025, and the Middle East has shown considerable interest. These trends are driving South Korean companies, which have accumulated extensive expertise through domestic IT infrastructure projects, to broaden their international footprint
