Gyeongnam Province to Build the Leading Startup Ecosystem Outside the Capital Region

Investment of 1.2976 trillion KRW by 2027

Establishment and Implementation of Four Major Innovation Strategies

Gyeongsangnam-do will invest a total of 1.2976 trillion KRW from this year until 2027 to transform the startup ecosystem within the province.

On the 28th, Gyeongnam Province announced that it will officially launch the project after finalizing the five-year detailed implementation plan for the ‘Gyeongnam Startup Ecosystem Innovation Strategy,’ which was drafted at the end of last year, in March.

Innovation Strategy for the Startup Ecosystem in Gyeongnam.
[Provided by Gyeongnam Provincial Government]

According to the province, under the goal of ‘Gyeongnam, the global manufacturing innovation startup hub,’ four major innovation strategies have been established: ▲regional industrial innovation utilizing startups’ innovative DNA ▲innovation of startup support infrastructure ▲innovation in startup ecosystem investment ▲innovation in startup culture.

The province has confirmed 10 key focus tasks accordingly, setting macro goals to nurture 10 IPO companies and 3 global unicorns by 2027.

Specific targets include establishing 1,000 incubation spaces, creating startup investment funds worth 1 trillion KRW, generating 10,000 new jobs, and supporting 2,000 companies by 2027.

They aim to build the top startup ecosystem outside the metropolitan area to establish a foundation capable of competing with the Seoul metropolitan area, prevent the outflow of local companies to the metropolitan area, and attract manufacturing-based metropolitan companies to Gyeongnam.

In addition to manufacturing startups, policies to activate startups in various fields such as future new technologies and local sectors will also be implemented.

Conceptual Diagram of Startup Infrastructure Innovation in Gyeongnam. [Provided by Gyeongnam Provincial Government]

To innovate the startup ecosystem, the province will undertake initiatives such as ▲nurturing 100+ Gyeongnam-type super-gap startups ▲preparing the G-Startup League ▲establishing startup hubs in three major regions ▲conducting a feasibility study for the establishment of the G-Startup Hub ▲expanding investment funds to 100 billion KRW ▲creating a 1 trillion KRW scale investment fund ▲launching G-Tips, a Gyeongnam-type TIPS program ▲hosting a global manufacturing startup festival ▲training university-specialized young entrepreneurs ▲operating startup boot camps and mentor groups for middle-aged and older adults.

Lee Jae-hoon, head of the Startup Support Group, said, “This plan is very meaningful in that it focuses on discovering startups with innovative technologies in manufacturing industries such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and digital twins,” adding, “In addition to manufacturing startups, we will also intensively nurture startups in competitive fields across Gyeongnam, such as content culture, tourism, and leisure.”