Post-Corona, the Startup Boom in the Non-Face-to-Face Sector Heats Up 'Hot'

2094 Companies Apply for Early Startup Package Program to Foster Early-Stage Startups in the Non-Face-to-Face Sector

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] Despite the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), enthusiasm for startups in the online and non-face-to-face sectors remains strong. The Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development (President Kim Kwang-hyun, hereinafter Kised) announced on the 7th that many startup companies applied for the 3rd supplementary budget (hereinafter supplementary budget) project for proactive response in the post-COVID era, recording a high competition rate.

According to Kised, the recruitment results for preliminary and early startup packages, local creator activation, and re-challenge success packages reflected in the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ (hereinafter Ministry) 3rd supplementary budget showed applications from 8,470 companies, recording an average competition rate of 8.2 to 1. Among them, the preliminary startup package and early startup package supporting entrepreneurs with non-face-to-face sector items in 2020 saw a 24.9% increase in applicants compared to the previous year.

In particular, the early startup package project attracted 2,094 applicants for 100 recruitment spots, recording a competition rate of 20.9 to 1. Kised explained that this can be seen as evidence that despite the worsening crisis for startups due to the spread of COVID-19, the entrepreneurial spirit of startups striving to turn the crisis into a new opportunity remains alive.

The early startup package is a startup commercialization support project that supports the leap and growth of startups within three years. Through this supplementary budget, Kised plans to focus on nurturing startups in the non-face-to-face sector that will lead the post-COVID era. President Kim Kwang-hyun said, "The recruitment results for this supplementary budget project show that despite the spread of COVID-19, enthusiasm for startups has not cooled and continues, demonstrating the necessity of nurturing startups in the non-face-to-face sector in the 'post-COVID' era. Kised will continue to cooperate with the Ministry to foster startups in the non-face-to-face sector and revitalize the economy stagnated by COVID-19."

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