Gwangju City Partners with Korea Angel Investment Association to Support Early-Stage Startups

Business Agreement Signed... Cooperation to Foster AI Startups and Revitalize Startup Camps

On the afternoon of the 13th, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, took a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement with Ko Young-ha, Chairman of the Korea Angel Investment Association, in the city hall business room. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City and the Korea Angel Investment Association are joining forces to support early-stage startups in the Gwangju area.

On the 13th, Gwangju Mayor Lee Yong-seop, Korea Angel Investment Association Chairman Ko Young-ha, former GIST President Moon Seung-hyun, and Honam Angel Investment Hub Council Chairman Ha Sang-yong attended a signing ceremony for a business agreement with the Korea Angel Investment Association at the city hall business room.

Through this agreement, the city and the Korea Angel Investment Association will collaborate to ▲ foster AI startups in the Gwangju area and activate angel investment ▲ promote AI startup camps in the Gwangju area ▲ support the commercialization of technology startups based on excellent technologies in the Gwangju area.

The Korea Angel Investment Association, established as a corporation in 2012, operates programs such as TIPS to nurture angel investors, build networks between angel investors and startups, expand the base of angel investment, and create a virtuous cycle venture investment ecosystem through corporate growth support.

TIPS is a system where private investment companies discover startups and invest around 100 million KRW, and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups supports up to 900 million KRW for R&D and commercialization funds, creating a structure where private investors make early investments and the government provides backing.

With this agreement, it is expected that entrepreneurs within the AI ecosystem built by Gwangju City will gain momentum to overcome early challenges, scale up, and grow into unicorn companies.

In particular, through the Korea Angel Investment Association and the ‘TIPS program,’ startups will receive practical mentoring and consulting, and angel investment, which has been concentrated in the metropolitan area, will spread to regions, helping to revitalize youth startup companies locally and overcome investors’ fears regarding investment and success possibilities.

Ko Young-ha, Chairman of the Korea Angel Investment Association, said, “To succeed in the Gwangju-type AI business model, the support of angel investors and TIPS is essential, and we expect the joint growth of Gwangju City and the Angel Investment Association as the foundation of Korea’s future startups.”

Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, stated, “We will actively support AI startup companies that never stop challenging for their dreams and young entrepreneurs who are confidently opening the future with outstanding imagination and creativity to grow into unicorn companies.”