Next Elevation Startup Demo Day Held
Five Outstanding Startups Selected for Accelerating Program Participate
Visitors Experience Services Through On-site Booth Participation
Five outstanding startups that underwent a three-month intensive preparation process to leap into becoming 'unicorns' took the stage. The fields these startups are challenging range from food tech to artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain. Their commonality lies in their readiness to solve problems in various aspects of our lives and bring about new changes. Innovation has begun. This is the scene of the first demo day of the startup accelerator 'Next Elevation.'
Next Elevation, a startup accelerator established by Asia Economy, held the '2023 Next Elevation Demo Day The Beginning' on the 7th at Spigen Hall in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. This demo day was an event where five startups participating in the accelerating program presented their refined business models and directions developed over the past three months. It was also an opportunity to attract investment. Investors from Meritz Securities, Asan Nanum Foundation, Korea Venture Investment, Yonsei University, CJ CheilJedang, Danal Investment Partners, Rising Ventures, Maum Group, Samsung Electronics Development Team, Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance, Swallaby, Mirae Asset Capital, Coupang, D.CAMP, and others attended the event.
Kim Hee-su, CEO of Limpid, is giving a company presentation at the '2023 Next Elevation Demo Day The Beginning' held on the 7th at Spigen Hall in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@
Growing Businesses Together Through Close Mentoring
The five startups participating in the demo day overcame a competition ratio of 26 to 1 to take the stage. Over 130 startups from various fields applied, and five were finally selected in August. The three-month accelerating program that followed was a process of growing the business together through close mentoring with Next Elevation experts, based on detailed analyses such as setting KPIs, establishing initial strategies, and product strategies for the startups.
The five companies are ▲ Limpid (a data-driven customized pet food tech company) ▲ MyHouse (a space module solution company) ▲ Odi (od·LLM-based personal style AI curation service) ▲ Gamper (blockchain-based smart ticket/membership service) ▲ Nutropic Lab (nutropic food tech brand).
The aspirations of the startup representatives on stage were bold. Kim Hee-su, CEO of Limpid, said, "We will become a trustworthy pet food tech company through secured data." Jang Cha-geun, CEO of MyHouse, said, "We will solve the distrust in the interior market through standardization." Lee Seon-jun, CEO of Odi, explained, "We provide ultra-personalized concept stores tailored to consumer preferences." Lee Jun-seop, CEO of Gamper, said, "We will start with the ticket market using blockchain technology and change the culture of digital asset trading in Korea." Lee Jung-woo, CEO of Nutropic Lab, said, "Our goal is to become Asia's number one nutropic company."
On the 7th, visitors are visiting the Limpid booth at the '2023 Next Elevation Demo Day The Beginning' held at Spigen Hall in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@
Experience-Centered Booths Set Up
At the demo day venue, about 200 attendees were able to obtain detailed information about each company through exhibition booths. Various events and corporate promotions were held at the five booths. A notable feature was that the booths were operated with an experience-centered approach, allowing visitors to directly experience each startup's services. Gamper held an event where attendees could receive physical items such as sports drinks through NFTs on-site. Go Woo-jin, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Gamper, explained, "The purpose is to increase understanding of the platform that trades membership rights and gift certificates online."
At Odi's booth, a participant set their preferred style and asked the AI chat window, "I want to go to a party, what men's clothes should I wear?" The AI guided them through items like clothes and shoes, showing the purchase process across multiple sites up to the pre-purchase stage. MyHouse allowed participants to directly estimate interior costs. One participant estimated for a 24-pyeong (approximately 79.3 square meters) space with two rooms and one bathroom, resulting in about 35 million KRW.
Next Elevation invests up to 100 million KRW per team in startups selected as outstanding teams. All participating teams will proceed with follow-up investment attraction through this demo day. Asia Economy also supports PR communication by producing content about the growth stories of the startups.
Ma Young-min, Head of Asia Economy's Investment Division and CEO of Next Elevation, said, "We selected five startups and embarked on a three-month journey of innovation and challenge starting in September. It was a process of realizing dreams by implementing ideas and setting ambitious goals." He added, "Every project we worked on is important in itself and, furthermore, I believe it is the starting point of innovation and development that will change many people's lives and the ecosystem of industries."
Ma also said, "Now, I hope the five startups will have opportunities to discuss their visions with more people and set higher goals. Even after the demo day, Asia Economy and Next Elevation will continue to work with the five startups," he added.
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