'Jang Byeong-gyu, Chairman of Krafton, Appointed as Head of the K-Unicorn Project National Review Panel'

'K-Unicorn Project National Jury' Official Launch

Jang Byung-gyu, Chairman of Krafton

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (Minister Park Young-sun, hereinafter referred to as the Ministry) announced on the 15th that the 'K-Unicorn Project National Review Panel' was launched on the 19th and that Jang Byeong-gyu, Chairman of the Board of Krafton, was appointed as the head of the review panel. The K-Unicorn Project National Review Panel is a newly introduced open evaluation method this year to ensure that companies supported by this project, such as Baby Unicorns and Pre-Unicorns, are selected with public empathy and support.

Unlike in the past when evaluations were conducted by committees composed only of a few experts, the National Review Panel participates directly in the final evaluation alongside private experts to enhance fairness and transparency. The National Review Panel consists of 200 experienced individuals in entrepreneurship, venture business, technology, and management fields. During the recruitment period from April 21 to May 11, 800 people applied. Among the qualified candidates, 200 members were randomly selected to form the National Review Panel, consisting of 54 with startup experience, 52 with startup planning experience, 41 venture investors, and 53 technology management experts. The majority are in their 30s and 40s.

Jang Byeong-gyu, appointed as the head of the review panel, is a first-generation leading venture entrepreneur who served as the first chairman of the Presidential 4th Industrial Revolution Committee under the Moon Jae-in administration. Chairman Jang stated, "Our society must accept innovation as natural and necessary. I accepted the Ministry's offer to lead the National Review Panel to help create an environment where the challenges and processes of innovation, such as startups and innovative companies, can continuously attract public interest."

He added, "Ultimately, it is important to support Baby Unicorns to grow into Unicorn companies," emphasizing, "we will focus on creating opportunities for participating companies and various stakeholders to achieve tangible results and growth based on innovative businesses chosen by the market and customers."

Chairman Jang and the National Review Panel will participate in a total of three evaluations: starting with the final evaluation of the 'Baby Unicorn 200 Nurturing Project' on the 19th, the first half final evaluation of the 'Pre-Unicorn Special Guarantee' on July 10, and the second half final evaluation of the 'Pre-Unicorn Special Guarantee' in December. Lee Ok-hyung, head of the Venture Innovation Policy Division at the Ministry, stated, "Together with Chairman Jang and the National Review Panel, we will select companies with high potential to grow into Korea's future unicorns through rigorous evaluation."

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