500 in general/tech track, 600 in local track

Youth under 40 make up 64.9%; youngest participant is 15, oldest is 72

Participants already securing investment, filing patents

Final 200 to be chosen in December after regional auditions

Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups Noh Yong-seok delivers remarks at a field meeting with operators and mentoring institutions for the Everyone's Startup program in the Greater Seoul area, held at the Seoul Creative Economy Innovation Center in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on July 15. [Ministry of SMEs and Startups]
Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups Noh Yong-seok delivers remarks at a field meeting with operators and mentoring institutions for the Everyone's Startup program in the Greater Seoul area, held at the Seoul Creative Economy Innovation Center in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on July 15. [Ministry of SMEs and Startups]

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced Friday that it has selected 1,100 participants to advance to round 2 of the "Everyone's Startup Project."

According to the ministry, the round 2 cohort consists of 500 participants in the general and technology track and 600 in the local track. They were chosen from a pool of 5,000 first-round selectees through an incubation and evaluation process. The program originally drew 63,000 applicants.

The ministry said it was significant that participants had already produced tangible commercialization results — including securing investment and filing patent applications — within just two months of joining the program.

Among all those selected, 64.9 percent were under 40. The youngest selectee is 15 years old and the oldest is 72, reflecting a broad range of ages.

The youngest selectee proposed a travel-planning platform focused on rural tourism, built on a curated review-crawling algorithm. Despite being a teenage entrepreneur, the participant is already pursuing a patent application.

The oldest selectee proposed developing a vitality stick product using non-marketable apples from Andong in North Gyeongsang Province, and is working to strengthen commercialization prospects by securing intellectual property rights and conducting consumer research.

Some round 2 participants have already succeeded in attracting investment. One participant, recognized for growth potential in the AI operations management market, secured 200 million won ($146,000) in investment from incubator CNT Tech. Another participant from Gwangju raised 100 million won from the Gwangju Creative Economy Innovation Center after demonstrating the technical strength and growth potential of coreless motor technology.

Participants from outside the capital region accounted for 80.9 percent of all selectees. By region, the Yeongnam area led with 27.9 percent, followed by the Chungcheong region at 20.1 percent, the Honam region at 19.1 percent, Gangwon Province at 9.4 percent and Jeju at 4.4 percent.

By sector, the general and technology track was led by IT at 36.2 percent, followed by biotech and healthcare at 15.8 percent and lifestyle at 10.8 percent. AI-related keywords appeared in 43.2 percent of all applications. In the local track, lifestyle topped the list at 45 percent, followed by food and beverage at 38.8 percent and beauty at 9.7 percent.

The 1,100 selectees will receive a range of support covering everything from early-stage commercialization to investment attraction, including seed funding, mentoring, regulatory screening, access to advanced GPUs and guarantee programs.

A nationwide round 2 information tour will begin Monday. Regional and area-level auditions will follow, with a final 200 participants to be selected in December. A community platform called "Everyone's Startup Community," where successful entrepreneurs share their experiences and insights, will also launch Thursday.

Vice Minister Noh Yong-seok said the ministry would spare no effort in supporting the selected talent to grow into competitive, innovative companies, and would work to spread a nationwide startup culture where anyone can freely pursue entrepreneurial ambitions.

Meanwhile, the ministry is also recruiting applicants for a second Everyone's Startup Project, separate from the first. Applications opened Aug. 20 and run through 4 p.m. on Sept. 17. The second project will select 10,000 participants — twice the number of the first — comprising 8,000 in the general and technology track and 2,000 in the local track. At least 80 percent of all selectees will be prospective entrepreneurs, and at least 70 percent will come from outside the Greater Seoul area.


boo@heraldcorp.com