Gwanak-gu-Seoul National University Campustown Resident Company AniAI Wins Grand Prize at 'K-Startup 2020'

Campus Town Resident Companies Show Results Through Gwanak-gu-Seoul National University Startup Support Program...Accelerating the Creation of 'Gwanak S Valley' with Seoul National University by Providing Startup Spaces and Various Programs

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Gwanak-gu District Office (Mayor Park Junhee) and 'AniAI' (CEO Hwang Geonpil), a tenant company in the Seoul National University Campustown, won the grand prize (champion) at the ‘Challenge! K-Startup 2020’ competition.

Challenge! K-Startup is a contest jointly organized by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Science and ICT to select entrepreneurs and prospective entrepreneurs with promising startup ideas. AniAI won the grand prize in the prospective startup league, receiving the Prime Minister’s Award and prize money of 150 million KRW.

AniAI was selected at the Gwanak-gu?Seoul National University Campustown tenant company competition held last August. The startup, located in Nakseongdae-dong, was provided with free startup space at HERE-RO Branch 2 and is developing an ‘ultrasonic recognition system.’

CEO Hwang Geonpil of AniAI said, “The Gwanak-gu?Seoul National University Campustown, which provides the best environment and opportunities to meet good investors through various events, is our most grateful partner. With the passion to change the future, we will grow the company’s value by 10,000 times and contribute to the Korean economy.”

Meanwhile, the Gwanak-gu?Nakseongdae Campustown, which has established HERE-RO Branches 2 and 4 as two main hubs in Nakseongdae-dong and Daehak-dong respectively, is progressing smoothly. A total of 16 startups, including AniAI, are actively operating there. In January next year, HERE-RO Branch 3, which can accommodate 15 companies, will newly open in Daehak-dong.

Additionally, to foster a venture culture, the district supports various startup-related programs jointly with the Seoul National University Startup Support Group, including demo day events where startup products are showcased to investors to discover promising companies, successful CEO lectures, the Nakseong Startup Forum, and networking among entrepreneurs, beyond just providing startup spaces.

In particular, Gwanak-gu is the first among basic local governments nationwide to establish a ‘Startup Support Fund’ worth 20 billion KRW. Through the startup scale-up project, it supports early business expenses of 50 million KRW for prospective and newly established venture companies, promoting the growth and local settlement of companies in the region.

Mayor Park Junhee said, “With last year’s selection as a comprehensive Campustown project, we are accelerating the creation of Gwanak S Valley. We will continue to do our best to establish Gwanak-gu as Korea’s top venture valley through building startup infrastructure and implementing various corporate support policies.”

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