Recruitment of Participating Companies for Gwanak S Valley 2nd 'Startup Scale Up × Demo Day'

A Total of 150 Million KRW in Commercialization Funds for 5 Outstanding Companies, Up to 50 Million KRW per Company
Applications Accepted Until 6 PM on April 24... Providing Promising Startups with Stable Funding and Investment Opportunities!

Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) is taking a step closer to attracting 1,000 venture companies through the ‘Gwanak S-Valley 2nd Startup Scale-up X Demo Day,’ which simultaneously provides promising venture companies with commercialization funds and investment attraction opportunities.

Following the high competition rate of 4:1 in the ‘Gwanak S-Valley 1st Startup Scale-up X Demo Day,’ the district is accelerating the project by consecutively holding a total of four Demo Day events as scheduled.

The ‘Gwanak S-Valley 1st Startup Scale-up X Demo Day,’ held on the 12th, featured eight companies that passed the preliminary round of the Demo Day, competing in the finals by showcasing innovative technologies and business potential alongside the Gwanak S-Valley Fund investment briefing by Seoul National University Technology Holdings.

As a result of the final evaluation, ‘Cheonnyeon Sikhyang,’ which developed steak alternative meat using plant-based protein, won the grand prize and received 40 million KRW in commercialization funds.

Additionally, the Excellence Award was given to ‘EIS,’ an optical technology-based research automation system (30 million KRW), while Cogcom (Merit Award, 20 million KRW) and Solive Ventures and Attitu (Encouragement Award, 10 million KRW each) were selected as outstanding companies.

The ‘Gwanak S-Valley 2nd Startup Scale-up X Demo Day’ is scheduled for May 9, and eligible participants are venture startups within seven years in advanced technology fields such as information and communication, bio, and healthcare. After preliminary screening (1st document review, 2nd presentation review), eight companies will advance to the final stage.

Companies wishing to participate must submit their application forms by 6 PM on April 24 via email to the person in charge. More detailed information can be found in the recruitment announcement on the Gwanak-gu website.

All eight companies that pass the preliminary screening and reach the finals will receive a certificate from the mayor as a special benefit.

Among them, five companies selected as outstanding will receive commercialization funds (totaling 150 million KRW, up to 50 million KRW per company) in descending order for prototype production costs, market development and promotion expenses, intellectual property application, and acquisition costs for various certifications. However, companies selected for scale-up funding must establish and maintain their headquarters in Gwanak-gu within one month from the date of the agreement.

Meanwhile, in January, the district was the only local government to establish the ‘Gwanak S-Valley Pavilion’ at CES 2024, the world’s largest international electronics exhibition held in Las Vegas, operating booths for eight companies. As a result, two companies won innovation awards, and remarkable achievements were made, including attracting domestic and international investments worth 3.1 billion KRW and entering local test stores in LA.

Mayor Park Jun-hee of Gwanak-gu said, “We will spare no administrative support to foster the venture startup ecosystem and regional economic development,” adding, “We will do our best to ensure that excellent venture companies with innovative technologies and business potential can become global unicorn companies in Gwanak S-Valley.”