Ministry of SMEs and Startups Hosts Youth Entrepreneurship Festival 'BizCool Festival'

[Asia Economy Reporter Junhyung Lee] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 2nd that it will hold the youth entrepreneurship festival, '2021 Youth Bizcool Festival.' The festival will be held online from the pre-event on the 3rd through the 5th.

The Youth Bizcool Festival marks its 15th year this year. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups set the theme of this event to suit Generation Z youth as 'Unfold Your Z-confidence.' Additionally, the event utilizes 'Zepeto,' a leading domestic metaverse platform. The event introduction hall and the online exhibition halls of participating schools will be operated within Zepeto. According to the ministry, students directly designed the spaces within Zepeto to highlight their individuality and creativity.

At the opening keynote speech on the 4th, Jung Hyunkyung, CEO of Musicow, will be the speaker. On the 5th, at the 'Unfold the Unicorn' event, Kim Taeyong, CEO of EO Studio, a startup specialized media, Gong Heejun, CEO of Chilmyung Bio, and Ahn Seohyeong, CEO of Bitbyte, will attend. These young startup CEOs who challenged entrepreneurship during high school will share their experiences and know-how.

On the 3rd, the pre-event will feature the 'Smartin App Challenge,' the largest domestic application (app) development competition for youth. Twenty-seven teams will participate in three categories: future industry, lifestyle information, and entertainment. Celebrating its 11th anniversary this year, the competition is hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and SK to nurture creative talents in the mobile sector. So far, 3,543 teams and 12,376 participants have taken part, commercializing 399 apps and successfully launching startups for 49 teams.

The 'Sprout Enterprise Competition,' which presents the outcomes of Bizcool activities, will also be held. This competition features middle and high school students selected through the Sprout Camp presenting their excellent items in the final round. Five middle school teams and fifteen high school teams, selected from entrepreneurship clubs in 424 Bizcool schools, will compete in the finals, presenting products they directly created and undergoing mock investment evaluations.

Cha Jung-hoon, Director of the Startup Venture Innovation Office at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "In the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, many new jobs are emerging, and it has become an era where one must start a business at least once in a lifetime," adding, "We will wholeheartedly support youth with dreams and talents to grow into future entrepreneurs through Bizcool."

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