Selected 98 SMEs and Venture Companies in Big 3 Sectors... Recruiting Additional 150 Companies for 2nd Round

Source=Ministry of SMEs and Startups

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daeseop] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 30th that it has selected 98 companies with growth potential in the Big 3 sectors (system semiconductors, biohealth, and future automobiles).

This selection of the Big 3 sectors is a follow-up support to the government's 'Big 3 SME and Venture Company Innovation Growth Support Strategy' announced last December. A total of 250 companies across 15 detailed fields within the Big 3 sectors (50 in system semiconductors, 100 in biohealth, and 100 in future automobiles) will be intensively nurtured.

In the first round of recruitment, 315 companies applied, and 98 were selected, recording an average competition rate of 3.2 to 1. By sector, 17 companies in system semiconductors, 61 in biohealth, and 20 in future automobiles were selected. The technical performance and innovativeness were strictly verified by reflecting the evaluations of 225 experts by sector and the opinions of 58 citizen jurors.

In particular, the number of applicants in the biohealth sector accounted for 75% of the total, showing high interest. Reflecting this demand, 61 companies were selected. Among them, 24 companies related to pharmaceuticals and medical devices, such as vaccine and therapeutic development and diagnostic kit development, were selected, indicating the influence of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to systematically manage the selected companies by organizing an innovation mentor group composed of experts by sector to provide continuous support from project planning to performance management. Additionally, from the 1st to the 20th of next month, a second round of recruitment will be announced to select 150 more companies in the Big 3 sectors. SMEs and venture companies wishing to participate can apply from the 8th to the 20th of next month.

The Ministry initially planned to select a total of 30 companies in the pharmaceutical sector but will expand support to up to 60 companies in pharmaceuticals, including vaccines and therapeutics, to overcome COVID-19, selecting an additional 36 promising startups for focused nurturing.

Cha Jeonghun, Director of the Startup Venture Innovation Office at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "Through this support project, we plan to select startups that will play a core role in the Big 3 sectors and spare no effort in supporting them from technology development to commercialization." He added, "Especially as we are significantly expanding recruitment of companies in the biohealth sector to overcome COVID-19, we hope many startups and venture companies with growth potential will apply."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.