Uijeongbu City and Gyeonggi Innovation Center Join Forces for Advanced and Defense Industry Growth

Promoting Sustainable Collaborative Projects
From Startup Discovery to Investment

On August 12, Uijeongbu City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Kim Donggeun) signed a business agreement with the Gyeonggi Creative Economy Innovation Center (hereafter referred to as the Gyeonggi Innovation Center) to "revitalize the advanced future industry and defense industry ecosystem."

Kim Donggeun, Mayor of Uijeongbu, signed a business agreement on the 12th with Kim Wongyeong, CEO of Gyeonggi Creative Economy Innovation Center, to "revitalize the advanced future industry and defense industry ecosystem," and they are taking a commemorative photo together. Provided by Uijeongbu City

This agreement aims to discover and nurture startups in the advanced future industry sector within Uijeongbu, using the "Gyeonggi AI Innovation Cluster," which is scheduled to open in March next year, as a hub. It also seeks to drive sustainable regional industrial growth by building a defense industry and investment ecosystem. In particular, the two organizations agreed to strengthen their cooperation system in building a growth ecosystem for the defense industry, especially in relation to the city's participation in the Gyeonggi Defense Venture Center project.

The main areas of cooperation include: ▲ discovering and nurturing startups ▲ attracting and supporting the settlement of outstanding startups ▲ jointly operating specialized programs for the commercialization of innovative technologies and attracting investment ▲ revitalizing the investment ecosystem for future industry startups ▲ and creating an advanced defense industry ecosystem.

The Gyeonggi Innovation Center is a public accelerator jointly established by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Gyeonggi Province, and the private sector (KT), supporting startup discovery, growth, and overseas expansion. Based on its northern Gyeonggi office, which is scheduled to open in November, the center plans to lead the expansion of the startup ecosystem throughout northern Gyeonggi and discover and nurture promising startups within Uijeongbu City.

In particular, the center will actively cooperate in the "Gyeonggi AI Innovation Cluster" project being established at the Uijeongbu City Business Support Center. It aims to promote the transition to artificial intelligence (AX) and technology proof-of-concept (PoC) in the manufacturing sector in the Gyeongwon region, including Uijeongbu, thereby driving the activation of the AI industry.

In the defense industry sector, the plan is to discover and nurture startups producing AI-based defense materials, and to build a network for the advanced defense industry ecosystem. This will strengthen the competitiveness of Uijeongbu City's advanced defense industry sector and help the city emerge as a key defense industry hub in Gyeonggi Province.

In addition, the two organizations will cooperate in establishing the "Uijeongbu City Future Industry Development Fund." The Gyeonggi Innovation Center has experience operating various local government funds, such as the "Youth Startup Fund" in Anyang and the "Step-Up Growth Fund" in Goyang, as well as extensive investment experience. Based on this, the center will serve as an advisor in the process of establishing Uijeongbu City's first fund, aiming to strengthen the startup investment base and secure growth engines for future industries.

Mayor Kim Donggeun stated, "With this business agreement, we will establish a solid foundation to ensure that innovative startups in our city can grow stably from the early stages," adding, "In particular, we will strive to make Uijeongbu a central city for future industries and the defense industry by creating an ecosystem specialized in the advanced defense industry sector."

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