Startup Festival 'ComeUp 2022' Seeks Private Operators... 2.4 Billion KRW Budget Support

Korea's Largest Startup Event 'ComeUp'
Operational Method Changes to Private Sector Leadership from This Year
Online Applications Open Until the 21st of Next Month

The global startup festival 'ComeUp 2021' was held on the 17th at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) in Seoul. Citizens visiting the event are seen exploring the booths. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The government is recruiting an organizing institution for the global startup festival 'COMEUP 2022.'

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it will begin recruiting the organizing institution to plan and operate COMEUP 2022 starting from the 20th.

COMEUP, which originated from the Venture Startup Competition that began in 1997, was revamped into a global event attended by entrepreneurs and investors worldwide in 2019. Last year, it established itself as the largest startup event in Korea with 50,000 participants both online and offline.

Until now, the organizing committee was formed to jointly operate the event by the private sector and the government, but from this year, the operation method will be changed to be led by the private sector utilizing its expertise.

The selected organizing institution will receive a budget of 2.4 billion KRW and will be responsible for the overall event, from planning to promotion and operation. The project includes ▲ recruiting and supporting participating companies (IR, mentoring, business matching, etc.) ▲ online and offline promotion ▲ festival event operation (conference, IR events, exhibition booth management, etc.).

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups has set the designation period to three years to help the organizing institution establish a self-sustaining foundation capable of independently carrying out the event, with the possibility of extending for an additional two years based on performance evaluation.

Applicants for the organizing institution must be domestic private corporations capable of operating global events. One institution will be finally selected through a face-to-face evaluation of basic qualifications and an operational plan reflecting the event's purpose.

The application and submission period for the organizing institution is until the 21st of next month, and applications can be submitted online through the K-Startup website.

To help understand the purpose of the recruitment and the application process, an online briefing session will be held on the 25th at 4 p.m. via the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development's YouTube channel.

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