Gangnam-gu held the "2026 Next-Generation Innovation Talent Conference" on Saturday at Tipstown S1 Tipshall, where vocational high school students shared the software and AI skills they had developed over four months.
The conference served as a showcase for the vocational high school track of the Gangnam-gu Innovation Talent Development Academy. Students chose real-life issues facing the district — parking shortages, reducing single-use plastics, commuting and pedestrian safety, access to cooling centers and flood prevention — then designed solutions, building and presenting prototype online services using AI tools.
The Gangnam-gu Innovation Talent Development Academy is a workforce-training program that builds practical skills in fourth-industrial-revolution fields for unemployed youth and vocational high school students. The vocational track ran from March through July, with instructors visiting schools directly. About 80 students from four schools participated: Sudo Technical High School, Daejin Design High School, Seoul Robot High School and Dankook University Affiliated Software High School.
Students received hands-on training aligned with each school's area of specialization — coding, content creation, robotics and web development. Sudo Technical High School ran an AI-assisted coding master course; Daejin Design High School offered an AI-based design portfolio course. Seoul Robot High School conducted a practical robotics project course, while Dankook University Affiliated Software High School ran a web development course in which students built websites and online services using AI tools.
At the conference, teams selected their own topics on the spot and analyzed the problems together, then used AI tools to build prototype services and prepare presentation materials. Each team delivered a five-minute presentation followed by a question-and-answer session. Judging criteria included clarity of problem definition, relevance to local issues, planning quality, originality and technical feasibility.
The district recognized top-performing teams and individuals, awarding the Gangnam-gu District Mayor's Prize to one grand-prize team, one excellence team, two merit teams and four outstanding individual students. The projects students produced can also serve as practical portfolio pieces for job applications and university admissions.
The district said the program's significance lies in giving young people experience not just learning AI technology, but identifying local problems on their own and designing solutions. Gangnam-gu plans to expand education that reflects each school's needs and broader industry trends, supporting youth in entering future-oriented industries.
"Watching students connect AI technology to everyday problems — parking, pedestrian safety, flood prevention — and work toward solutions, I saw the future of Gangnam," district mayor Kim Hyeon-gi said. "We will strengthen practice-oriented education and employment-linked support so that young people can grow into the core talent driving future industries."
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