Leveraging the World's 2nd Largest National R&D to Develop the 'Korean Version of Moderna'

Ministry of Science and ICT Announces Support Measures to Promote Deep Science Startups

The government has announced plans to nurture a Korean version of 'Moderna' by leveraging the country's world-class level of national research and development (R&D) investment.

On the 21st, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced measures to revitalize deep science startups at the Emergency Economic Ministers' Meeting. Deep science startups refer to challenging ventures in advanced ICT and bio fields based on high-level scientific knowledge and R&D. Moderna, which developed the messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine technology to respond to the global COVID-19 pandemic over the past three years, is a prime example. Utilizing mRNA vaccine technology developed in 2010 based on synthetic biology at Harvard University and MIT, Moderna developed a COVID-19 vaccine in just 10 months, a process that previously took 5 to 10 years. This achievement generated astronomical profits and brought about innovative ripple effects across the bio industry.

IonQ, a company famous for developing quantum computers, is another representative case. Founded in 2015 by Duke University professor Jungsang Kim and University of Maryland professor Chris Monroe, who co-authored a paper on ion trap quantum computers, IonQ develops quantum computers and software. It is a leading startup in the field, having secured $75 million in funding from Google Ventures. Helion Energy in the nuclear fusion sector is also notable. Established in 2013 by researchers including David Kirtley and Chris Phil who co-authored related papers, it has attracted over $500 million in investments from the U.S. federal government’s Department of Energy and Department of Defense.

The government plans to actively utilize the results of national R&D investments, which rank second worldwide, to foster a Korean version of Moderna. Through scientific and technological innovation, it aims to secure new growth engines and take the lead in future new technology fields. As of 2021, Korea’s national R&D investment was 4.96% of GDP, ranking second globally. However, startup achievements based on this investment remain low. The cumulative number of startups was 1,633 in 2019 and 2,879 in 2022, accounting for only 0.07% of all startups.

To revitalize this, the Ministry of Science and ICT plans to invest 700 billion won in scientific and technological startup R&D by 2027, increasing the number of startups to 5,500 over the next five years. The five-year survival rate will also be raised from 75% in 2020 to 85% in 2027. Specifically, support will be provided for researcher-entrepreneur collaborative startup R&D, and competitive methods will be used to discover and secure strong intellectual property. In particular, a tentative 'Deep Science Primer Fund' of 450 billion won will be established by 2027 to support early growth such as seed investments. Various funding supplies will be promoted, including incorporating the deep science sector into policy finance targets. Support will also be provided for securing core research facilities, equipment, and specialized personnel.

Additionally, a deep science startup growth ecosystem will be created. To this end, efforts will be made to strengthen private-sector-led intellectual property utilization and planning-type startup support, build a startup growth ladder leading to overseas markets, designate and expand pilot purchases of innovative products in the deep science field, and diversify fair performance distribution and compensation methods.

Oh Tae-seok, the first vice minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, said, "It is time to convert the scientific research achievements accumulated through investment in science and technology into economic value," adding, "We will promote the revitalization of deep science startups in connection with the technology commercialization and startup policies of related ministries."

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