Ewha University-Industry Collaboration Foundation, Hosts Inaugural Ceremony for the 2024 Korea Innovation Corps Program
- Date2024.05.03
- 20121
Ewha Womans University hosted the inaugural ceremony of the "2024 Public Technology-Based Market-Linked Startup Support Project" on Tuesday, April 30th, at 2 PM in the ECC Lee Sam-Bong Hall. The event was attended by Ewha Womans University president, Kim Eun-mi, Vice Minister of Science and ICT, Lee Chang-yun, Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology President Kim Bong-soo, and presidents and vice presidents of the seven Laboratory Startup Innovation Groups, as well as approximately 200 people, including the selected representatives of 60 preliminary lab startup exploration teams among the 26 universities and research institutes nationwide. The ceremony was to celebrate the initiation of activities for the 2024 Public Technology-Based Market-Linked Startup Support Project and share outstanding cases and achievements from the previous year.
Hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and organized by the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology, the project aims to educate and nurture lab startups so that the basic research results from university and research institute labs can be quickly utilized in the market. The newly selected preliminary lab startup exploration teams for 2024 will verify business feasibility for eight months, through interviews with about 100 potential customers at home and abroad, pivoting their ideas, and preparing for startups through prototype production, investor relations (IR) activities, and mentoring.
The event began with a welcome speech by Vice Minister Lee Chang-yun and a congratulatory speech by President Kim Eun-mi. Vice Minister Lee stated, "We will strive to discover and enhance basic and fundamental research results and create conditions for high-tech, innovation-based startups", and added, "I hope many researchers will continue to challenge themselves without fear of failure and take the lead in spreading a culture of entrepreneurship." President Kim Eun-mi encouraged the participants, saying, "Just like our university, which has walked the path of innovation and adventure based on knowledge and wisdom, I hope you will move toward your dreams using the experiences gained from this project as a stepping stone."
(from left) Vice Minister Lee Chang-yun, President Kim Eun-mi, UNIST President Lee Yong-hoon, GIST President Lim Ki-chul
During the event, senior entrepreneurs shared their experiences and know-how with the new preliminary startup teams. Director Park Il-seok, who participated in the project in 2017, founded “Stryx” through the commercialization of a high-degree precision mapping solution for autonomous driving. Stryx was acquired by Kakao in 2021, and Director Park now leads as the executive director of Kakao Mobility. Additionally, CEO Seo Dong-eun of the startup "Repla" achieved significant success by winning the Innovation Award at "CES 2024" in January by showcasing a bio tank for plastic recycling. Other notable companies’ CEOs who participated in the project were "Aldaver", which won the grand prize (President's Award) at the 2023 Challenge K-Startup competition, and "SOSLAB", which is the first LiDAR industry company preparing for an IPO.
(from left) Kakao Mobility Executive Director Park Il-seok, Repla CEO Seo Dong-eun
Prior to the inaugural ceremony, a discussion hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT took place. Vice Minister Lee, President Kim, UNIST President Lee, GIST President Lim as well as other vice presidents from Korea University, Sungkyunkwan University, KAIST, and POSTECH exchanged opinions regarding the “Establishment of Industry-Academia-Research Tech Scale-up Platform (National Task 75-5)”, about the spread of entrepreneurship culture based on R&D, and expressed the ministry's strong commitment to support.
During the discussion, Kim Se-hyang, a doctoral student in medical science at Ewha Womans University, represented the 60 lab startup exploration teams, conveying her passion and determination to participate in the project. Kim is the Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) of the Dental Convergence Sound Solution Research Lab and is preparing to start a business developing a system to reduce noise during dental treatments.
(from left) Vice Minister of Science and ICT, student Kim Se-hyang, President Kim Eun-mi
Ewha University-Industry Collaboration Foundation operates various initiatives and projects, such as the Public Technology-Based Market-Linked Startup Support Project (Korean I-Corps), the Entrepreneurship Education Innovation Leading University, Campus Town, and the Lab-Specialized Startup Leading University projects. Under the mission of benefiting the world through the “Ewha DNA”, the Foundation provides education, mentoring, funding, and space to prospective and early-stage entrepreneurs, guiding and supporting them throughout the startup process for successful business initiation and market entry. Additionally, it strives to activate students and faculty startups through connections between the university and industry.