"Discovery of Overseas Expansion Potential"... 2nd Cohort of 'Global Startup Academy' Launches

1st Batch Startup Teams Achieve 8.4 Billion KRW Sales in 5 Months
144 Jobs Created · 5.9 Billion KRW Follow-up Investment
Nurturing AI Innovation Companies with Global Firms
2nd Batch Expands Support Areas... 'Google' Also Participates

At the graduation ceremony of the Global Startup Academy held on February 19 at the Nodulseom Multipurpose Hall in Seoul, government officials and first-generation graduates are taking a commemorative photo. (Provided by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] # In 2018, CEO Kim Seong-hoon, who founded MyPuppy, confirmed the possibility of entering overseas markets after receiving education at the Global Startup Academy. MyPuppy utilizes consumer data from pet adoptions to connect with pet insurance products and possesses AI-based technology to prevent pet insurance fraud. CEO Kim said, "We found that China and Japan have the same pet distribution systems as Korea and face similar structural issues," adding, "Especially, we discovered the potential to expand our business into China’s massive 35 trillion won pet market." MyPuppy plans to launch a pet-exclusive insurance product this month in collaboration with DB Insurance.

The first cohort of the Global Startup Academy, which supported 60 AI-based startups’ overseas expansion through collaboration between the government and global companies, achieved remarkable results in less than six months. According to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on the 1st, the 60 startup teams of the first cohort of the Global Startup Academy recorded total sales of 8.4 billion won and created 144 new jobs within five months of entering the program last August. They also attracted follow-up investments worth 5.9 billion won, recognizing their technological capabilities and business potential.

The Global Startup Academy is a startup nurturing project newly established by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups last year with a budget of 10.8 billion won. It provides global-level technical education, incubation, and mentoring to foster entrepreneurs with excellent commercialization ideas into innovative companies. Last year, global companies such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft (MS), NVIDIA, and Intel participated as educational institutions. Additionally, startup accelerators 500 Startups, SOSV, Plug and Play, and Startupbootcamp had their staff stationed on-site to provide close support. These four companies are startup accelerators ranked within the top 8 globally in investment performance according to CB Insights.

In February, a demo day was held to evaluate the capabilities of the first cohort of the Global Startup Academy graduates. At the demo day event held in Yongsan, Seoul, 12 participating companies introduced their businesses and explained their business items to global investors. MyPuppy received high evaluations from global investors and ranked third. MyPuppy developed a solution that manages individual pet histories and buyer data from pets adopted at pet shops. CEO Kim said, "The adoption contracts, which were previously handwritten, have been converted to electronic documents, and there is no need to implant embedded chips in pets," adding, "This reduces the workload for sellers, consumers, and local governments while increasing satisfaction."

The company plans to introduce its management solution to 8,000 pet shops by 2026. It intends not only to sell insurance products at pet adoption sites but also to prevent insurance fraud using AI. CEO Kim explained, "Generally, preventing insurance fraud requires deploying numerous personnel, but by using AI to compare and analyze insurance claim data, abnormal signs can be detected efficiently." Recently, MyPuppy received an investment of 10 million won from a venture capital (VC).

The company that took first place at the demo day, Data Republic, is aiming to enter the ‘decentralized finance’ market using blockchain technology. Decentralized finance refers to individuals directly buying and selling financial products using virtual currencies without going through banks or other financial institutions. Data Republic will participate in an acceleration program conducted by SOSV this year and will also receive investment. Omnis Labs, which ranked second at the demo day, developed an AI solution that analyzes aerial photographs. It is expected to have high public sector applicability, such as identifying illegal buildings or detecting cars on roads and forest area extents.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to hold the opening ceremony for the second cohort of the Global Startup Academy early next month. The selection process for 60 startup companies is currently underway. The second cohort will expand the support fields beyond AI to include data and networks, and will strengthen the program by adding Google Cloud as an educational institution.