Apple Developer Academy graduates top 1,000 in Korea as tech giant deepens local investment

"The number of Korean developers produced by Apple's Developer Academy has exceeded 1,000, and the apps they have launched on the App Store have surpassed 400." (Enwei Xie, Apple head of developer relations)

Apple plans to expand its investment in South Korea's developer ecosystem. The company intends to nurture local talent through its Developer Academy while also providing AI-powered development tools to help Korean developers enter overseas markets.

Software development has become one of the most sought-after career paths among job seekers in their 20s over the past five years, driven by high salaries and specialized expertise. Entry-level developer salaries in South Korea can reach as much as 60 million won ($40,900) annually, and graduates of Apple's Developer Academy are expected to earn comparable starting pay. The trend has also drawn more young people into the field regardless of their academic background.

Xie made the remarks Wednesday at an "Apple Developer Ecosystem Briefing" held at Apple Korea's offices in Asem Tower in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. "We have continuously supported Korea's developer ecosystem over the past 25 years, and we will strengthen our partnership with Korea going forward," he said.

Xie said Apple would expand its investment in the domestic ecosystem with the Developer Academy at the center of that effort. The academy selects trainees regardless of prior coding experience or academic major and trains them across a range of disciplines — from coding and design to marketing and AI. In South Korea, the academy opened in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, in 2022.

"We established the Developer Academy as part of a long-term investment in Korea's developer ecosystem," Xie said. "It is particularly encouraging that more than half of the participants are women. Apple will go beyond supporting existing developers and focus on cultivating the next generation."

Xie praised the performance of academy graduates. "Over the past six years, about 600 people have participated and more than 120 have won awards, with 10 of them named top winners and invited to visit Apple's headquarters in the United States," he said. He added that "seven of this year's award winners are either academy graduates or current students."

Xie also said Apple is broadening developers' use of AI through its "Intelligence Framework" development system.

"Using Apple's Core AI framework, it is possible to run an LLM directly on the device," he said. "Through the integrated development environment Xcode 27, developers can also use not only Apple's own AI models but also the latest AI models such as Anthropic's Claude and Google's Gemini within their development workflow."

He added that technologies such as SwiftUI have also evolved to provide the memory stability developers need to build everything from mobile apps to platforms that extend beyond the Apple ecosystem.

The event featured demo sessions from four Korean companies: Sketchsoft, developer of the iPad 3D creation app Feather: Draw in 3D; Vimosoft, developer of the video editing app Whailo; Devsisters, developer of the game Cookie Run: Oven Smash; and Mintrocket, developer of the PC and console game Dave the Diver. All four were presented as examples of Korean companies that have secured pathways into overseas markets through collaboration with Apple.

Mintrocket CEO Hwang Jae-ho said Dave the Diver is set to launch in overseas markets on the strength of the company's partnership with Apple.

Dave the Diver is a Korean-developed game that has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide across PC and console platforms. "Apple's App Store features a 'Try Before You Buy' system that lets users try a game for free before purchasing," Hwang said. "We expect to use that to expand our presence in the North American market."