Daegu Startup 'VSPAMTECH' Newly Selected for 'Baby Unicorn 200'

Special Guarantee Support Up to 5 Billion KRW

Daegu City announced on the 25th that innovative startups have achieved excellent results throughout this year, with six companies selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ K-Unicorn Project programs, including Baby Unicorn and Super Gap Startup 1000+.

‘VS Pharmtech,’ which is developing a radiation therapy efficacy enhancer, was newly selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ representative startup nurturing program, ‘Baby Unicorn 200.’ Companies selected for Baby Unicorn 200 can receive up to 300 million KRW in market pioneering funds, special guarantees up to 5 billion KRW from the Korea Technology Finance Corporation, and support for global market entry.

Sangyeok Government Complex, Daegu City.

Additionally, Astrogen, selected as a Baby Unicorn in 2020, was newly selected for ‘Baby Unicorn Plus’ this year due to its innovative business model and clear corporate growth, receiving up to 300 million KRW in funding for global expansion.

In particular, Astrogen is diligently carrying out the final stages of new drug approval by collaborating with 11 general hospitals nationwide to pass domestic Phase 3 clinical trials, and is the closest to launching the world’s first new drug for autism spectrum disorder treatment, attracting significant attention from patients’ families and the medical community.

Furthermore, in the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ new project, the ‘Super Gap Startup 1000+ Project,’ which focuses on supporting startups in the top 10 advanced future industry sectors with less than 10 years of operation, Dr. Tail, CT Cells, UNDI, and Geo Robot were selected to receive up to 600 million KRW in commercialization funds and up to 600 million KRW in research and development support.

Also, six companies supported by Daegu City won eight Innovation Awards at CES 2024 (the world’s largest consumer electronics and information technology exhibition) held in Las Vegas, USA, in January next year.

Among the award-winning companies, ‘Mobin’ (CEO Choi Jin), which recently relocated its headquarters to Daegu, received the Innovation Award for obstacle-overcoming autonomous driving robot solutions. As a robotics company spun off from Hyundai Motor Company, Mobin has grown into a nationally promising company, advancing to the finals of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ startup competition ‘Challenge K-Startup.’

Daegu City plans to support the participation of four local startups in the ‘CES 2024 Korea Integrated Pavilion’ in collaboration with the Daegu Center for Creative Economy and Innovation and KOTRA.

The participating companies are Sik Pharma (customer management for the food service industry using big data), Seaweed (cultured meat), MDA (visual AI development), and Microbalance (microbial agents and environmental analysis).

In April, Daegu City launched a branch office of PNP in Dongdaegu Venture Valley and, through collaboration, implemented a global accelerating program including mentoring and IR coaching for seven promising local companies. Five companies?Seaweed, Dr. Tail, and Viewzen among them?participated in the ‘Silicon Valley Business Expo (December 5?7).’ They have received proposals for follow-up investment discussions from global investors such as Primer Sazze Partners and Kairos Ventures, with expectations to finalize investments next year.

Additionally, with support from Daegu City and PNP, Viewzen (smart film) and I’m System (vascular robots) have completed the establishment of local subsidiaries in the United States, while Hunate (battery) and Cast (water treatment sterilization) are in the process of establishing local subsidiaries in the U.S.

Moreover, policies were implemented to strengthen the global expansion and intellectual property acquisition of local companies, including support for a total of 693 intellectual property cases for venture and small-medium enterprises with weak IP acquisition capabilities, and assistance for 19 companies to enter Alibaba.com and 13 companies to enter Amazon.com, the world’s largest online platforms for non-face-to-face overseas market development.

In 2024, Daegu City plans to expand the number of companies participating in the global business expo to 10, actively supporting local startups’ overseas market entry. The city will also strengthen segmented, customized support for startups across all age groups, including youth, women, and middle-aged entrepreneurs, continuously increasing the selection of promising companies and cases of global expansion to enhance Daegu’s status as a city favorable for startups.

Choi Un-baek, Director of the Future Innovation Growth Office of Daegu City, said, “We will further establish a more detailed, customized support system throughout the entire startup lifecycle and actively support startups with excellent ideas and technologies to become the main drivers of Daegu’s economic growth for the next 50 years.”

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