An AI artist previously encountered only on screens took to a real stage at the Igansumun Gate Exhibition Hall of Seoul's Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) on the 18th. The TOP 3 winners of the global online campaign 'AIDOL101: From Montreux to the World' performed a cover show at 'TECHTAINMENT 2026 SEOUL · FORUM & AWARDS.'
Pulse9 CEO Park Ji-eun oversaw the planning and operation of the event, while AIDOL101 and IDAC co-hosted the awards. Under the theme 'AI IN K-CULTURE,' the program featured a morning workshop, awards ceremony, project presentations, cover performances and a forum, bringing creators, artists, startups, marketers and researchers together to share cases and insights.
The awards evaluated not only companies and services but also artists and projects that had introduced new content and creative approaches using AI.
The winners in each category included b.stage, the fandom business platform operated by bemyfriends, and KiTbetter, a project by music and content technology company MuseLive, which were selected for the International Digital Asset Grand Prize. The International Digital Asset Service Award went to virtual live platform Royal Streamer and Delv Partners.
Ha Jung-woo, vice chair of the National AI Strategy Committee, and Enterarts CEO Park Chan-jae were recognized as honorees for their contributions to the International Digital Asset Grand Prize.
The 'SEOUL DISCOVERY 2026 TOP 1' selections, determined through the AIDOL101 fan vote and final deliberation, were also announced by category. PIONIA's 'Autumn Cafe Stories' was selected in the AI MUSIC WORK & ALBUM category, while Annika's 'Annika' won in the AI CHARACTER & VISUAL IP category.
Gyuin's 'Polarization and Aurora' was selected in the AI MUSIC category, while hooo's 'The Connected, Disconnected Society' was chosen in the AI VISUAL category.
The five 'Featured Projects 5' were the Cheonggang International AI Genre Film Festival; the global AI music contest and festival 'AI.LOVE.JAZZ'; the musical work 'STARPLAY' by Italy's Kidokoro Studio Milano; the urban culture and public project 'Sim Eternal City'; and the character technology-based interactive web game 'IDONG World.' Rather than establishing an overall ranking, the judges evaluated each project's originality and potential for development.
'STARPLAY' is a musical track produced by Kidokoro Studio Milano. The event also introduced Kidokoro's 'AI Monophonic ReadyTM' protocol and forensic certification, designed to identify and preserve human authorship and certify the traceability of the music production process.
At the opening-day forum held that same day, Pulse9 CEO Park Ji-eun delivered a presentation on 'When Entertainment Becomes Infinite, What Becomes Valuable?' and joined a panel discussion. Park said, "As the amount of content that can be created with AI rapidly increases, it is becoming more difficult to stand out through the ability to produce content alone." She added, "Going forward, the value of choosing what to create and deciding how to connect it to relationships, experiences and businesses will grow." She continued, "Tech-tainment is not about simply attaching entertainment to technology. It is an emerging field created as AI, content, IP, fandom, platforms and real-world industries influence one another." Park emphasized, "I hope this Seoul event will become a starting point for discovering new forms of creativity and business that have not yet been named, rather than a venue for dividing up genres that already exist." Reporter Jeon Sang-hee, nowater@sportschosun.com
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
