Press Room

Promising domestic startups in the artificial intelligence (AI) field and Korean-American startups that have expanded to the U.S. gathered in Silicon Valley.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 14th that it held a startup networking event, 'Unlocking AI Innovation', in San Mateo, USA, on the 13th (local time).

This event was organized to lay the groundwork for the U.S. expansion of 14 promising AI startups visiting Silicon Valley to attend the 'K-Startup & OpenAI Matching Day in US' event. This is the first time the Ministry has arranged a separate networking event to support the local settlement of domestic startups.

The event was attended by leaders of the Korean startup community, including Kim Kwang-rok, CEO of Primer Saje and leader of '82 Startup', as well as local Silicon Valley startup representatives. Notably, the event was quickly fully booked with over 100 pre-registrations, demonstrating Silicon Valley's high interest in K-Startups.

The event was attended by about 140 people, including Lim Jung-wook, Director of the Startup Venture Innovation Office at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Lim Jung-taek from the Consulate General in San Francisco, and local U.S. startups and VCs.

The event consisted of panel talks, informal fireside chats, and elevator pitches. A fireside chat refers to a casual conversation as if sitting around a fireplace, while an elevator pitch is a brief 1-2 minute presentation designed to capture investors' interest in the short time it takes to ride an elevator. These are all common communication methods in Silicon Valley.

Yoon Jung-ho, CEO of Hilocal, an AI-based edutech company participating in the event, said, "I didn't know there were so many Korean startups in San Francisco, and there's hot interest in domestic AI startups directly selected by OpenAI even in the U.S." He added, "As a startup, we're very grateful that such a challenging opportunity has been arranged at the national level."

During the subsequent networking session, participants freely shared the latest technology and market trends, investment information, and strategies for entering overseas markets.

Consul General Lim Jung-taek said, "The Consulate General plans to actively support the globalization of K-Startups by operating various programs and providing regular local information for K-Startups trying to enter the global market based in the Silicon Valley area."

Lim Jung-wook, Director of the Startup Venture Innovation Office at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, who presided over the event, said, "We were able to confirm the global expansion will and potential of K-Startups," adding, "The Ministry will continue to create opportunities for exchange with overseas startup ecosystems to expand global expansion opportunities for our startups."

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