Patent Office "Up to 40 Million KRW Support for Senior Patent Technology Startups"

Senior Patent-Based Technology Startup Support Project System Diagram. Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) is launching support for senior entrepreneurs based on patented technologies.

On the 9th, KIPO announced that it is recruiting senior (prospective) entrepreneurs to participate in the ‘Senior Patent-Based Technology Startup Support’ project.

The project is implemented through collaboration among KIPO, the Banks Foundation for Young Entrepreneurs D.CAMP, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, and IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, aiming to assist middle-aged and senior technology startups by leveraging patents and skilled technologies.

The eligibility criteria require seniors aged 40 or older who hold patents by the application deadline (March 25). Those wishing to apply can submit their applications via the Korea Invention Promotion Association website from March 11 to 25.

KIPO will provide participating seniors with up to 40 million KRW in patent commercialization packages through specialized executing agencies, covering intellectual property acquisition, product commercialization planning, and product verification (testing and production).

Additionally, follow-up support will be provided through partner organizations to ensure continuous startup investment.

Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office

In particular, this year KIPO plans to strengthen support for senior entrepreneurs by diversifying methods of securing intellectual property and expanding collaboration with startup investment partners.

First, to build a strong intellectual property portfolio, the method of securing intellectual property rights, previously limited to new patent applications, will be expanded to include the acquisition of licenses (exclusive or non-exclusive), supporting the rapid acquisition of intellectual property (IP) necessary for startups.

Furthermore, financial institutions such as the Korea Technology Finance Corporation, Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, and IBK Industrial Bank of Korea will be newly incorporated into the collaboration network, which was previously limited to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Banks Foundation for Young Entrepreneurs, to further strengthen follow-up support for startup and investment programs, according to KIPO’s plan.

This year, regular networking meetings among successful venture entrepreneurs, investors, and startup founders will also be newly established. Additionally, the number of investment attraction briefings with private investment institutions will be expanded from six to eight sessions to help secure growth capital.

Last year, through this project, senior entrepreneurs secured an average of two intellectual properties, received support for 2.2 product commercialization strategies and 1.4 product verifications, resulting in 39 new jobs and attracting investments totaling 10.3 billion KRW. The project was newly launched and implemented for the first time last year.

For more detailed information about the project, please refer to the project announcement posted on the websites of KIPO and the Korea Invention Promotion Association.

Joo Kwang-hyun, Head of Patent Commercialization at KIPO, said, “This year, we will focus on maximizing outcomes by strengthening practical startup investment cooperation with various public and private startup institutions,” adding, “We hope for active interest and participation from capable seniors.”

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