Daegu Metropolitan City held the FIX 2026 Innovation Awards ceremony on 22 October at the EXCO East Wing Open Seminar Room, conferring the Best Innovation Technology Award upon 31 enterprises recognised for their technological capabilities across future industries. The ceremony served as a flagship event of the Future Innovation Tech Expo 2026 (FIX 2026), which opened on 21 October in Daegu, South Korea.
Around 100 participants attended the event, including Jung-ki Kim, Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs of Daegu Metropolitan City, representatives from domestic and international media, award-winning companies, and members of the evaluation panel.
FIX 2026 Innovation Awards Winners Across Three Sectors
In the future mobility sector, ONEPREDICT received recognition for its AI-based integrated management technology for factory facilities and production processes. SWM was honoured for its urban autonomous driving robotaxi technology, while PERSEUS was recognised for software that integrates and manages in-vehicle electronic control units. HJWAVE also received the award for developing radar antennas capable of precisely detecting surrounding obstacles for autonomous vehicles.
In the robotics sector, Tesollo was recognised for developing robotic hands designed to replicate the dexterity of human hands (this was my personal favourite). AeiROBOT received the award for its bipedal humanoid robot, Alice 5.
The ICT sector saw three award recipients. CENS was recognised for technology that automatically sprays dielectric coolant to manage heat in AI servers based on thermal conditions. POTATONET received the award for its AI-powered security technology that detects hidden malicious sites and cyber threats. WACE was honoured for introducing smart factory operations where AI independently assesses production processes and controls equipment.
Third Edition of FIX Innovation Awards Draws Record Applications
Now in its third edition, the FIX Innovation Awards is designed to identify and recognise enterprises with world-class innovations across future mobility, robotics, and AI/ICT. A total of 209 companies applied this year, with over 70% (147 companies) holding prior award-winning records at major domestic and international exhibitions, including CES.
Beyond the official recognition, winning companies are entitled to a range of benefits. These include a 30% discount on booth fees for the next FIX edition, participation opportunities in the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund U-CONNECT Demo Day, access to FIX 2026 Start-up Arena IR pitching and VC networking sessions, nomination priority for glocal startup support programmes linked with Plug and Play (PNP), and buyer matching alongside coverage across major domestic and international media and social media channels.
Jung-ki Kim noted that the high proportion of previously award-winning companies participating this year demonstrated an exceptionally competitive field, expressing hope that the awards would serve as momentum for the winning companies to publicise their achievements and pursue new business opportunities.
Pokdepinion: Daegu at South Korea is touted to become one of the first and fastest growing automation city. It’s like Korea’s testing playground for hyper modernization and expected to be an role model to the world.
