Seoul City '2023 WE UP Project'... Recruiting Promising Design Startups

Applications Accepted Until March 6, Approximately 8 Companies to Be Selected

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 26th that it is promoting the '2023 WE UP Project' to support design startups in growing into specialized design companies, and is accepting applications for design startups with innovative design ideas and capabilities until March 6.

This project aims to discover startups with innovative ideas but lacking execution power, and provides opportunities to materialize and apply the designs possessed by startups in practice. Applicants must be companies located in Seoul, in the startup stage within 7 years from the date of business registration, and have at least two design professionals to participate in the contest.

Seoul will comprehensively evaluate the submitted companies based on corporate capabilities and growth potential, business feasibility, effectiveness, and applicability, and select about 8 companies in total. Selected design startups will receive up to 25 million KRW per company to support design development and prototype production costs. Additionally, various educational supports that are practically helpful to companies such as big data utilization, marketing, patent application, and accounting, as well as opportunities for meetings with senior companies and networking with professionals from other fields will be provided.

In particular, selected companies can receive customized consulting from experts with abundant on-site practical experience. Also, through collaboration with various stakeholders during the project process, companies will have opportunities to enhance their recognition and promote the project by producing, installing, and exhibiting their ideas as physical objects.

This year’s project is significantly different from previous projects that focused on supporting the public design sector. It expands the target participants to startups across all design fields that will lead the future design industry, helping companies realize their innovative design ideas and concretize designs to enhance competitiveness in the market based on experience and achievements through focused support.

Applications and submissions will be accepted for six days from March 1 to 6. Required documents can be downloaded from the contest menu on the ‘Seoul in My Hand’ website and submitted via email.

Choi In-gyu, Seoul’s Design Policy Officer, stated, “This project provides various supports to capable design companies in the early stages facing commercialization difficulties, positively impacting the development of the design industry and other industries. We hope startups will further develop their design skills and corporate capabilities through this project,” and added, “Seoul will continue to actively support the revitalization and competitiveness enhancement of the design industry.”