"Everyone's Startup" Second Round of Recruitment Begins Mid-June... Incubator Expansion Planned

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to begin the second round of recruitment for the "Everyone's Startup" project in mid-June.

Minister Han Seongsuk of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups visited Hoseo University in Asan, Chungnam on the 22nd to spread enthusiasm for the "Startup for All" project among young people and to listen to university students' opinions. Minister Han Seongsuk (center) is giving a greeting speech at the meeting. Ministry of SMEs and Startups

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According to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on April 23, the second round of the "Everyone's Startup" project will be launched in June, based on an additional budget of 200 billion won secured through a supplementary budget.

An official from the ministry explained, "After selecting 5,000 participants in the first round, we plan to conduct the second round of recruitment from mid-June. Since the supplementary budget has been secured, we aim to proceed quickly. In the first round, participants are selected in two stages by region, but for the second round, we plan to run it more compactly and consecutively."

The program will also allow applicants who were not selected in the first round to reapply in the second round. The official said, "For those who were not selected in the first round of Everyone's Startup, mentors will provide feedback to help improve their ideas. We are preparing a foundation for them to try again using this support, and we are also working to create additional opportunities for support."

The ministry selected about 180 institutions as incubators for the first round of Everyone's Startup and plans to expand this number to about 200 for the second round. About 700 institutions were recommended during the selection process for the first round, and approximately 180 were chosen.

For the first round, the ministry will also provide an "AI solution" to the 5,000 selected challengers to help them validate their ideas. In addition, 30 GPUs secured by the ministry will be provided to 200 AI entrepreneurs who advance to the regional auditions.

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The Ministry of SMEs and Startups began accepting applications for the Everyone's Startup project on March 26, and as of April 23, a total of 13,165 ideas have been submitted. The cumulative number of visitors is 713,766. On April 19, just 25 days after the recruitment began, the number of applicants surpassed 10,000.

By age group, the distribution is as follows: 28.5% in their 30s, 27.1% in their 20s, 21.5% in their 40s, 10.9% in their 50s, and 7.8% in their teens. By region, the Seoul metropolitan area accounts for 56.1% of applicants, while non-metropolitan regions account for 43.9%. Breaking down the non-metropolitan regions: Chungcheong area 16.1%, Yeongnam area 14.1%, Honam area 9.8%, Gangwon 3.1%, and Jeju 0.8%.

Due to the high volume of applications, the ministry has introduced a "fast-track review" system, prioritizing the review of incubators with the highest application demand. The list of incubators subject to fast-track review will be announced on April 24.

The Everyone's Startup project is a talent development platform that provides anyone with an idea the opportunity to pursue entrepreneurship. Participants can receive coaching from over 100 incubators including universities and accelerators, as well as from a mentor group of more than 500 experienced entrepreneurs. The final winner will receive funding of over 1 billion won and be connected to follow-up growth programs to support their global expansion.

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