Korea Startup Forum to Host Korea's First Onboard Startup Festival

'BUSAN Slush'D 2025' to Be Held in July
Entire PanStar Miracle to Be Used as Event Venue... Enhanced Organic Connections
"Showcasing the Potential of the Regional Startup Ecosystem to the World"

The Korea Startup Forum announced on June 12 that it will host "BUSAN Slush'D 2025" aboard the PanStar Miracle, which will depart from Busan Port from July 26 to 27.

"BUSAN Slush'D" is a spin-off event organized by the Korea Startup Forum, which has officially brought the global startup event "Slush" from Finland to Korea. Now in its third year, BUSAN Slush'D has established itself as Korea's leading local startup festival planned and operated by the private sector. This year, for the first time among domestic startup festivals, it will be held on board a ship.

Korea Startup Forum

This year's Slush'D will be held under the theme "BUSAN Slush'D at Sea: That Night, We Truly Connected," featuring programs centered on empathy and conversation rather than formal pitching. The event will focus on immersive networking at sea, moving away from conventional conference venues. In particular, the entire PanStar Miracle will be used as the event space to enhance the organic connection between programs and participant engagement, creating an environment where approximately 180 people?including venture capitalists (VCs), startups, aspiring entrepreneurs, and sponsors?can interact naturally.

Main programs include the opening session "Slush'D Talk," designed to foster empathy and camaraderie among both entrepreneurs and investors; "Slush'D Meet," which is divided into exploratory group matching, free matching, and one-on-one meetups; "Slush'D 10," a pitching session featuring promising startups from the Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongnam (Bu-Ul-Gyeong) region; "Slush'D Youth," a session for university students and aspiring entrepreneurs; and the networking session "Slush'D Night."

Applications for Slush'D 10 are being accepted through the official Slush'D website until June 25. Startups based in the Bu-Ul-Gyeong region can apply regardless of their founding date or investment status. The 10 selected teams will be given the opportunity to participate in the main event on board, network with entrepreneurs and investors, and receive full membership in the Korea Startup Forum. Among them, the final team with the best pitch will be awarded a prize of 3 million KRW.

Han Sangwoo, Chairperson of the Korea Startup Forum, stated, "BUSAN Slush'D will evolve into an innovative festival that organically connects entrepreneurs and investors, local and global communities, and entrepreneurs and the ecosystem. We will do our best to showcase the potential of the local startup ecosystem to the world and ensure that Slush'D becomes a practical bridgehead for regional startups to expand globally."

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