One of the bright ideas to achieve the goal is the K-Startup Grand Challenge.
Korea is one of the fastest growing economies in Asia, with global economic groups such as LG, Samsung, and Hyundai; and is the birthplace of many outstanding start-ups, entrepreneurship, and technology. With the orientation to become the leading Start-up Centre in the region and the world, the Korean Government has been implementing many activities to build and develop an open ecosystem to attract global start-ups to establish doing business in Korea as a big step to expansion to other major Asian economies.
One of the bright ideas to achieve the goal is the K-Start-up Grand Challenge (KSGC) Accelerator Program launched in 2016 by the Korean Government, supported by the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Start-ups (MSS) Korea and organized by the National IT of Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA) of Korea. In 2022, the Korea IT of Cooperation Centre in Hanoi (KICC), under the National IT of Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA) continues to be the unit responsible for implementing the K-competition competition. This year, K-Start-up Grand Challenge 2022 (KSGC 2022) launched in Vietnam and Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, East Timor by Start-up Vietnam Foundation.
Up to now, the program has held the 7th time with more than 10,000 applicants from 151 countries around the world and has a total investment of more than $US1.5 billion. This year, the KSGC 2022 Program has officially received registration documents from April 15th to the end of May 31st: from start-ups in various countries across Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia in fields such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), financial technology (fintech), logistics, biotechnology, robotics, game development, Internet of Things (IoT) and e-commerce.
More than just a contest, KSGC 2022 is also considered as a door to support start-ups that can expand to foreign markets, providing opportunities to contact and find advisors and leading investment funds. Asia’s leader, helping to solve obstacles from business models, languages, legal policies, etc.
The K-Start-up Grand Challenge 2022 Accelerator will be held from August 1 to November 15, 2022 (3.5 months), at the world-class Start-up Facility in Technology Valley, Pangyo.
According to the contest schedule, the Top 60 selected start-ups will participate in the 3.5-month start-up accelerator program in Korea (with support funding up to $US11,136 /team) and present products to investors at the investment fair. After that, the Organizing Committee will select 30 start-ups to participate in the establishment support program in Korea, which will last for another 3.5 months (with funding up to $US11,136/team). Top 10 start-ups will receive financial support totalling up to $US320,000.
In addition, start-ups participating in the contest can also access many other funds and investors, supported by the Korean government to settle down and set up business in “the homeland of kimchi”.
