TIPA Holds '2021 TechUP Demo Day' to Attract Investment for R&D Companies

Investment Briefing Session with Promising ICT and Biohealth Companies and VC Participation

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jonghwa] The Korea Technology and Information Promotion Agency for SMEs (TIPA) held the '2021 1st TechUP Demo Day' on the 20th at the Courtyard by Marriott in Yeongdeungpo to promote investment attraction for SMEs conducting research and development (R&D).

The TechUP program is an investment attraction fostering and support process designed to assist small and medium venture companies in commercializing excellent innovative new technologies and products developed through R&D, and has been operating since 2018.

TIPA regularly holds investment briefing sessions called 'TechUP Round' for domestic venture capitalists (VCs) and 'Global Investment Briefings' for overseas investors to provide more investment opportunities to TechUP fostered companies.

Through this, from 2018 to last year, 23 companies have attracted investments totaling 14.54 billion KRW, achieving tangible results that help the commercialization of SMEs conducting R&D.

Investment-promising companies participating in the '2021 TechUP Demo Day' have opportunities to meet various investment institutions not only through IR targeting VCs but also during separate networking times arranged throughout the event.

Lee Hoon, CEO of Eva Co., Ltd., said, "As the electric vehicle infrastructure market grows, investors' interest in this field is increasing," adding, "In this situation, having the opportunity to introduce our company's new electric vehicle infrastructure solution will greatly help in attracting investment."

The '2021 1st TechUP Demo Day' involved 20 investment-promising companies in the ICT sector, bio-healthcare, and materials, parts, and equipment sectors, along with about 15 investors from related fields. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, strict quarantine guidelines were followed, and the event was conducted both online and offline using video chat programs.

Participating companies include △Eva (next-generation electric vehicle charging infrastructure solutions) △Dudu IT (non-face-to-face ICT practical support service platform) △Kanghanson (wearable voice recognition device enabling visually and spinal cord disabled persons to easily use smart devices) △Rimo (personal health management solution using video AI and simulation), and were simultaneously held in the ICT hall and healthcare and materials-parts-equipment halls according to industry sectors.

Lee Jae-hong, Director of TIPA, said, "We will continue to prepare various programs to support investment attraction for R&D-performing companies and strive to create opportunities to support the commercialization of innovative technologies and products of excellent small and medium venture companies."