Changwon Special City Discovers and Supports Young Entrepreneurs... Successful Completion of Young Entrepreneur Idea Competition

Grand Prize Winner in University Student Category: GULABSPACE
Youth Category: Saito, Tech Startup Category: Jiyu

Changwon City in Gyeongnam held a youth startup idea competition to discover and support young entrepreneurs.

From the 22nd to the 25th, Changwon City hosted the "1st Changwon Youth Startup Idea Competition" at the Changwon Convention Center, concluding the event by selecting the final winners, including grand prizes and excellence awards in each category.

Changwon Special City held a youth startup idea competition.

The "Changwon Youth Startup Idea Competition," held for the first time this year, was organized to discover and support promising young entrepreneurs and university students in the Gyeongnam region. A total of 52 teams applied, including 16 university (preliminary) teams, 21 youth (early-stage) teams, and 15 technology startup (growth) teams. After preliminary rounds, 10 teams from each category, totaling 30 teams, advanced to the finals.

In the university (preliminary) category, organized by the Gyeongnam Startup Education Network, 10 teams of university students and startup clubs from the Gyeongnam region participated. The grand prize (cash prize of 2 million KRW) was awarded to the "Gulab Space" team from Gyeongsang National University. The Gulab Space team is a startup club developing a lunar exploration rover platform based on a miniature cube satellite.

In the youth (early-stage) category, organized by the Korea Electric Research Institute and Gyeongnam Venture Investment, 10 promising young entrepreneur teams from the Gyeongnam region participated. The prestigious grand prize (cash prize of 5 million KRW) was awarded to the "Saito" team (headquartered in Changwon, with a factory in Yangsan). The Saito team is a newly established startup founded in 2023 that develops TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane), an eco-friendly special material that replaces silicone and is a flexible plastic with rubber elasticity.

In the technology startup (growth) category, organized by the Changwon Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 10 technology startup companies located in Changwon (within 7 years of establishment) participated. The grand prize (cash prize of 5 million KRW) was awarded to "Jiyu." Jiyu is a startup developing speakers that use ultrasound to create highly directional sound, adding waterproof functionality and delivering high-quality sound over long distances in the desired direction.

Additionally, excellence awards (4 teams), merit awards (8 teams), and encouragement awards (15 teams) were selected in each category and cash prizes were given. Besides the prize money, winning teams will also receive follow-up support benefits such as preferential evaluation for participation in the "2024 Startup Support Project."

Jang Geum-yong, the 1st Deputy Mayor, said, "I give great applause to the challenging spirit and passion of the teams participating in the youth startup idea competition and extend congratulations and thanks to all the winning teams." He added, "Continuously holding such competitions to discover young entrepreneurs who will lead Changwon's future is an important role of Changwon City."

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