Matching Mid-sized Companies and Startups... Accelerating 'Digital Transformation'

Ministry of Industry, Junggyeonryeon, Intelligence Association, Shinhan Bank, and 3 Others Collaborate
'Junggyeon Companies-Startup Digital Transformation Win-Win Lounge' Held

Jung Seung-il, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The government announced that it will accelerate the pace of digital transformation through matching between mid-sized companies and startups.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced that, together with the Korea Federation of Mid-sized Enterprises and the Korea Intelligent Industry Association, it will hold the "1st Mid-sized Company-Startup Digital Transformation Win-Win Lounge" at the Grand Ballroom of COEX, Seoul, starting at 9 a.m. on the 25th.

This event is a follow-up measure to fully implement the "Mid-sized Company Digital Solidarity" launched on the 23rd.

It aims to induce digital transformation by combining innovative startups' new ideas with the capabilities and experience of mid-sized companies, securing new growth engines.

At the event, seven organizations including the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Federation of Mid-sized Enterprises, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, the Intelligent Industry Association, Shinhan Bank, Wadiz, and Albatross Investment signed a business agreement.

The seven organizations agreed to actively cooperate to support win-win digital transformation activities between mid-sized companies and startups in the future.

Through the "Mid-sized Company-Startup Futures Program," excellent startups will be discovered and matched according to the technology demands of mid-sized companies. The goal is to establish more than 20 partnerships.

Ideas discovered through collaborative projects will be commercialized into new businesses and supported intensively through growth programs to enter domestic and international markets.

Financial institutions and support organizations will provide business model concretization and marketing. Investments necessary for the commercialization of ideas will also be linked and supported through crowdfunding and other means.

Utilizing the global networks of the government and support organizations, they will assist mid-sized companies and startups in jointly entering overseas markets. Next year, a 25 billion KRW global support project for mid-sized companies will be conducted, and localization will be supported through Shinhan Futures Lab's overseas bases.

In the second part of the event, a special lecture on digital transformation under the slogan "Digital Innovation! Together through Mid-sized Company-Startup Win-Win!" and presentations by startups possessing digital technologies were held.

Deep learning and data analysis specialized startups, discovered through a preliminary survey targeting mid-sized companies, presented digital transformation business ideas, attracting the interest of mid-sized companies.

Jung Seung-il, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said, "'Digital Transformation Win-Win Lounge' will be a place of solidarity and cooperation where mid-sized companies and startups promote digital transformation. We will work with partner organizations to carry out various support activities to accelerate the digital transformation of mid-sized companies and to achieve early results in a win-win innovation ecosystem."

Meanwhile, the Digital Transformation Win-Win Lounge will be held a total of five times this year, starting with the first event on this day. Mid-sized companies and startups wishing to participate can apply by visiting the Intelligent Industry Association website or by phone.

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