Choi Tae-won Completes First Special Mission... SK "Two Impact Unicorns Surpass 100 Billion KRW in Corporate Value"

Impact Unicorn CEO Meeting
First Phase Program Goal Achieved

SK Group announced on the 10th that the corporate value of two startups nurtured through the 'Impact Unicorn Program,' which supports the growth of startups solving social issues, has surpassed 100 billion KRW.

SK Group revealed on the 10th that the corporate value of 'DoBrain,' a company diagnosing and treating children with developmental disabilities, and 'IntoCore Technology,' an eco-friendly energy transition and production company, both supported since 2020, exceeded 100 billion KRW this year. This achievement marks the first goal of the Impact Unicorn Program established by SK Group: 'support companies surpassing a corporate value of 100 billion KRW.' Thanks to the increase in corporate value, DoBrain and IntoCore Technology attracted investments of 21 billion KRW and 12.5 billion KRW, respectively. A unicorn refers to an unlisted company with a corporate value of over 1 trillion KRW. The 'Impact Unicorn' as defined and aimed by SK is a startup solving social problems with a combined economic and social value totaling 1 trillion KRW.

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group [Photo by SK Group]

Since 2020, SK Group has nurtured seven startups through the 'Impact Unicorn' program, which fosters startups solving social issues into sustainable companies. The seven companies, including 'Crepas Solution,' a financial service company for credit-vulnerable groups, IntoCore Technology, and 'Netspa,' a marine waste collection and recycling material production company, have seen their corporate values increase by an average of more than 2.6 times over the past three years. Based on this growth, they attracted a total investment of 66 billion KRW from various investment institutions, including funds invested by SK.

These companies are gaining growth opportunities through various collaborative projects with SK affiliates. Crepas Solution signed a contract for alternative credit evaluation business cooperation with SK Telecom and others, while Netspa is jointly promoting a recycled fishing net business in Vietnam with SK Ecoplant.

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has emphasized, “Only when role model Social Enterprises (SEs) or social ventures emerge will talented individuals be attracted, and necessary policies be formulated, creating a virtuous cycle in the SE ecosystem.” Following Chairman Chey’s directive, SK has selected Impact Unicorns and implemented support and nurturing measures such as ▲business support funds ▲business cooperation with SK affiliates ▲investment attraction ▲mentoring and promotion.

At the 'Impact Unicorn' project support fund ceremony held on the 9th at SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, (from right) Jo Kyungmok, Chairman of SK Supex Council SV Committee, Lee Sangbeom, Director of Allicon, Yoon Seokwon, CEO of Testworks, and Kim Kwangjo, SV Promotion Team Leader, are posing for a commemorative photo.
[Photo by SK Group]

On the 9th, SK Group additionally selected 'Testworks,' an artificial intelligence (AI) data and verification specialized company, as an Impact Unicorn at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, and delivered a business support fund of 100 million KRW. Testworks is a social venture specialized in AI in the field of public interest data generation and utilization. It collects data for vulnerable pedestrians and provides it as public data. It also creates carbon-neutral service products that maximize energy efficiency by analyzing energy usage data. Recently, it expanded into Vietnam. Additionally, SK Group provided 80 million KRW in global expansion support funds to Allicon, a distributed office operation company.

On the same day, SK Group held a meeting with the CEOs of Impact Unicorns to strengthen support cooperation. The meeting was attended by Cho Kyung-mok, Chairman of the SV Committee of SK Supex Council, representatives from Allicon, and DoBrain, a company diagnosing and treating children with developmental disabilities.

At the support fund delivery ceremony and meeting, SV Committee Chairman Cho Kyung-mok said, “Over the past three years, it has been proven through the Impact Unicorn Program that social ventures solving social problems are sustainable,” and added, “We will continue to support the growth of companies with innovative ideas.”

An SK Group official said, “SK Group will lead efforts to solve social problems by supporting the growth of innovative social ventures through the Impact Unicorn Program.”