Ministry of SMEs and Startups Conducts Final Evaluation of 'Baby Unicorn 200'... "Discovering Together with the People"

90 out of 155 Applicant Companies Selected... Final 60 Companies Chosen
Samsung, Hyundai Motor Participate in Judging... 100-Member National Jury Also Involved

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Junhyung] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 18th that it will conduct the final evaluation of the 'Baby Unicorn 200 Nurturing Project' at COEX in Seoul.

The Baby Unicorn 200 Nurturing Project is the first phase of the government's ongoing 'K-Unicorn Project.' Companies selected as Baby Unicorns can receive market pioneering funds of up to 300 million KRW to explore and develop new markets. The K-Unicorn Project is a public-private partnership initiative aimed at discovering Baby Unicorns and creating a scale-up (high-growth) environment to help them leap into unicorn status.

According to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, 90 out of 155 applicant companies advanced to the final evaluation. These 90 companies passed the first evaluation, which included eligibility review and technical assessment, and the second evaluation, which assessed innovation, growth potential, and market expansion. The ministry will select 60 companies through this final evaluation.

The final evaluation will be conducted through presentations. The ministry will assess ▲ the potential for growth into a unicorn company ▲ the company's desire to become a unicorn ▲ and the potential for social contribution.

The panel of 50 expert judges participating in the final evaluation includes representatives from domestic and international investment firms as well as global companies such as Facebook, Samsung, and Hyundai Motor Company. According to the ministry, these experts are capable of balanced judgment not only on technological innovation but also on the potential for global market entry.

The 'National Jury' will also participate in the final evaluation. The ministry plans to reflect the public's perspective in the evaluation through a National Jury composed of 100 members. The head of the National Jury is Bae Gisik, CEO of Ridi, the operator of the e-book platform 'Ridibooks.' Bae said, "I feel a great sense of responsibility serving as the head of the National Jury for this Baby Unicorn final evaluation," adding, "As the status of K-Unicorn rises, I will do my best in the evaluation to help birth the next-generation companies that will lead Korea's future growth."

Lee Okhyung, Director of Venture Innovation Policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "Since experts and the public will select Baby Unicorns together in the final evaluation, we will conduct a fair and transparent assessment," and added, "We will select unicorn candidate companies that will lead Korea's future and the global market."

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