"Fostering Start-ups with Public Technology"... Company Builders and Commercialization Specialists Selected

Ministry of Science and ICT Designates 13 Institutions

Comprehensive Support for Deep-Tech Start-Ups and Growth Throughout the Entire Cycle

The Ministry of Science and ICT has designated key commercialization agencies that will drive start-ups and growth based on public research achievements from universities and government-funded research institutes, and will fully implement a comprehensive support system that spans from technology discovery to start-up creation and investment attraction. The goal is to expand deep-tech start-ups based on public technology and establish a "seamless commercialization structure" that continues through the growth stage.

On the 23rd, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced that it had newly selected 10 "company builders" and 3 "comprehensive technology commercialization firms" to accelerate the commercialization of public technology.

Reference photo to aid understanding of the article. Photo by The Asia Business Daily DB

The company builders selected this time include university and government-funded research institute technology holding companies and private accelerators (ACs) with outstanding capabilities in start-up creation and commercialization. Notable examples are the technology holding companies of Kyungpook National University, Korea University, Seoul National University, and Hanyang University ERICA, as well as ETRI Holdings, KIST Innovation, CNT Tech, and Darae Strategic Commercialization Center.

Company builders are tasked with activating planning-type start-ups that utilize promising public technologies. The Ministry of Science and ICT will provide up to 1 billion won per year to each agency for up to five years. The selected organizations will be responsible for everything from technology discovery to early-stage start-up incubation and attracting initial investment.

"From Technology Discovery to Investment"... Integrating Commercialization Functions

The institutions chosen as comprehensive technology commercialization firms are Yonsei University Technology Holdings, Korea University of Science and Technology Holdings, and Bluepoint Partners. These organizations are characterized by their ability to pursue broader commercialization not only with their own technologies but also by utilizing technologies from other universities and government-funded research institutes.

The Ministry of Science and ICT will provide up to 3 billion won per year to each of these organizations for up to five years. The selected firms will integrate previously dispersed technology commercialization functions, covering the full commercialization cycle from technology discovery, team building, and space support to seed and subsequent investment attraction, as well as patent and legal services.

By fostering institutions that specialize in the commercialization of public research achievements according to their type, the government aims to reinforce the connected structure that links technology discovery, start-up creation, investment, and growth.

Through this initiative, the government plans to establish a system for the creation of deep-tech companies based on public technology and subsequent growth support over the next five years, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of the public technology commercialization ecosystem.

Lee Eunyoung, Director of Research Achievement Innovation at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said, "It is important to ensure that the process from excellent public research achievements to the market is not interrupted," and added, "We will nurture company builders and comprehensive technology commercialization firms as hubs for the spread of public research achievements, thereby actively supporting start-ups and growth based on public technology."

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