Iced Americano in Seoul, with a Fine Quebec Touch (Cat: Robotics + Semicon)

After ten days in South Korea, I’m flying back to Montreal tonight. The last item on my list was a visit to the Steel Museum at the POSCO Center on Teheran-ro — conveniently located right across from my hotel. In Quebec, POSCO has been making headlines as a major South Korean player in steel and battery materials and one of the companies investing heavily in Bécancour.

The museum tour was excellent: modern, informative, and surprisingly immersive. But the highlight came at the end, when I discovered the Steel Lounge — where my iced Americano was prepared not by a barista, but by a barista robot equipped with a ROBOTIQ gripper from St‑Nicolas, Quebec. A perfect blend of Korean innovation and Quebec engineering.

South Korea is a powerhouse in robotics — humanoids, co‑bots, industrial automation, even robotic security dogs. During the first days of my trip, we represented Luqia at Smart Tech Korea (STK2026) at COEX in Seoul. The event focused on Smart Industry, Robotics, Camera Vision, and Artificial Intelligence, with a strong emphasis on Physical AI. Quebec was the Nation of Honour, and Yoshua Bengio (MILA) delivered a keynote remotely.

A fun discovery: South Koreans love coffee. I even spotted a Tim Hortons on a street corner — something I didn’t see during my last visit three years ago. There are now 24 locations in Seoul, with plans to reach 50 within a year.

Quebec Pavilion: Robotics + Semiconductor Innovation:

·        Luqia (PM, Yb-doped Specialty Fibre, Gain module) – David Melanson, N. Gagnon

·        Mecademic (Precision robotics) – Philippe Beaulieu, Ammon Liu

·        ROBOTIQ (Grippers, palletizing solutions) – Zoey Chen, Jacob Jang

·        Averna (Automated test and quality assurance solutions) – Ray Shimura, Shoei Katano

·        MECHASYS (Robotic laser projector for construction layout) – Min Lee

A special thanks to the Délégation du Québec à Séoul and the Ministère des Relations internationales for their invaluable support in organizing our presence at STK2026.

During the second week, we focused on demand creation for Luqia’s specialty optical fibre and 1 µm Yb‑doped gain module, targeting semiconductor manufacturing and defence customers. We visited Ansan‑si, Yongin, Daejeon, and Gwangju.

South Koreans have a strong appetite for innovation, performance, and quality. We identified numerous opportunities and significant potential. Now comes the important part: nurturing these relationships and following up.

It was great to return to South Korea — this time representing Luqia. I’m energized by the momentum we’ve built and already looking forward to my next visit.

Comments, feedback, contact me at: nicholas@aheadcurve.co