Ready for Innovation... Six Promising Startups Gathered in One Place

Six Startups Showcase Innovative Solutions
Demo Day Highlights Growth in Food Tech, Short-Form Content, AI Audiobooks, and Digital Healthcare
Next Elevation and CNT Tech Support Startup Ecosystem Through Investment and Mentorship

Here are six startups that have spent about four months refining solutions to address various problems we encounter in life. The fields these startups are innovating in are diverse, including food tech, short-form content, AI audiobooks, and digital healthcare. They discovered inconveniences that might have been overlooked or endured until now, developed technologies to improve them, and built business models capable of growth. The demo day organized by Next Elevation, established by Asia Economy in partnership with CNT Tech, is an opportunity to witness these achievements.

Startup accelerator Next Elevation held the 'LeapStart' demo day on the afternoon of the 20th at TIPS Hall S1 in Tipstown, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. This demo day was arranged to introduce the advanced businesses of six startups that participated in the 13-week acceleration program conducted by Next Elevation and CNT Tech since October last year and to provide investment opportunities. About 200 people attended the event, including around 100 investors.

The six companies that participated in the demo day overcame a competition ratio of 28 to 1 to take the stage. They are 'Digital Nutrition,' which developed a health-enhancing auditory stimulation solution; 'Farmkit,' which created a hyper-personalized recommendation solution for food commerce operators; 'Shortplex,' a comprehensive short-form content service; 'Reepeez,' a kitchen automation robotics solution for small business owners; 'Isipsajjeomchil,' a real estate asset management software-as-a-service (SaaS); and 'Cynthia,' an AI audiobook automatic production service.

Ma Young-min, CEO of Next Elevation, is delivering the opening speech at the 'Leaf Start Demo Day' hosted by Next Elevation and CNT Tech at TIPS Hall, TIPS Town, Gangnam-gu, Seoul on the 20th. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

During the 13-week acceleration, these companies were diagnosed through the value check system developed by CNT Tech and, based on detailed analyses such as setting key performance indicators (KPIs), initial strategy formulation, product strategy, and marketing, they grew their businesses through one-on-one expert mentoring closely provided by Next Elevation and CNT Tech.

Next Elevation invests up to 100 million KRW per team in startups selected as outstanding among the selected teams. It also supports CNT Tech’s TIPS linkage. Additionally, all participating teams proceed with follow-up investment attraction through the demo day. Asia Economy supports PR communication by producing video and article content about the startups’ growth stories. Furthermore, various partnership benefits are provided through expanded partners such as AWS, Business Canvas, and ZUZU.

Jeon Hwa-sung, CEO of CNT Tech, is delivering the opening speech at the 'Leap Start Demo Day' hosted by Next Elevation and CNT Tech on the 20th at TIPS Hall, TIPS Town, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

Ma Young-min, CEO of Next Elevation, said, "We are holding the third demo day after preparing an early-stage investment accelerator program to contribute to the startup ecosystem striving for a new future. In this process, 172 teams applied, and six teams were discovered and went through professional coaching and preparation."

Ma added, "The startup ecosystem requires extensive networking and connections to achieve full-scale growth. It is created not only by passionate startups but also by various institutions and investors who can support them. Asia Economy will also strive to contribute to this ecosystem as a media outlet."

Jeon Hwa-seong, CEO of CNT Tech and president of the Early-Stage Investment Accelerator Association, said, "Global investors also attended this demo day. We will work to advance this program into the global market."