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Growing Companies in Seoul's Campus Town Project Professors and Students Join Forces for On-Campus Startups Expert Mentoring in Space, Legal, and Tax Matters Yang Seung-tae (left), Vice CEO of Hurotics, and Kim Joong-ho, CEO of Idea Ocean, Awarded the CES Innovation Award in 2024.   “The CES Innovation Award confirmed that the product we created is truly an innovative idea with the potential to make a real impact.” (Yang Seung-tae, Vice CEO of Hurotics) “Thanks to the CES Innovation Award, the level of interest in our company has changed. We've met many people, gained new ideas, and seen potential.” (Kim Joong-ho, CEO of Idea Ocean) The young passion from campuses, supported by local governments such as the Seoul Metropolitan Government, is now shining on the global stage. The campus-based companies that won the Innovation Award at the world’s largest IT expo, CES, held in the U.S. this January, are now dreaming of even bigger leaps. Kim Joong-ho (30, Ph.D. candidate in Mechanical Engineering at Seoul National University), who received the Innovation Award just four months after founding his official company, humbly credited his success to good luck, while also expressing his confidence in the company’s technology. Idea Ocean is developing technology that enables machines and robots to be designed and automated by artificial intelligence (AI). By creating a stem-like mechanism, it generates meaningful big data directly, claiming that its technology in moving machine and robot design is world-class. Yang Seung-tae (33, Ph.D. candidate in Mechanical Engineering at Chung-Ang University), the vice CEO of Hurotics, is also confident in leading the wearable robot field with differentiated robot designs and modular products that offer segmented medical devices. He stated, “Seeing companies that were ahead of us at CES gave us the confidence that we can do even better.” In addition to their belief in the technology, realistic support played a significant role. It’s not enough to run a business with passion and ideas alone. Through the Seoul Campus Town project, the companies were able to solve the critical issue of office space. Not only were they freed from worries about high rent, but their office’s location near public transportation also helped in attracting talent. Furthermore, legal, tax, and labor issues were promptly addressed with expert mentoring. As a result, Hurotics now employs 14 people, and Idea Ocean has expanded to 9 employees. Yang Seung-tae stated, “We received free consultations in areas like investment attraction and changes to our articles of incorporation, which helped us a lot since we had no prior knowledge of managing a company.” Kim Joong-ho, who successfully monetized by securing multiple contracts with domestic large corporations, emphasized, “We are constantly striving to become a leading startup.” They also stressed the need for more detailed support. Hurotics, for instance, values product feedback and hopes to have more opportunities to provide their products to those who truly need them in order to gain real-world experience. Idea Ocean, which has experienced rapid growth, emphasized the need for specialized space support for companies with more than 10 employees, which are no longer considered early-stage startups. Kim Joong-ho hopes that “having a nurturing space system tailored to each stage of startup growth, rather than just by years of operation, would be a huge help.”

Starts Production of Hamburger Cooking Robots Eniai, a robot kitchen startup, announced on the 24th that it has successfully secured $12 million (approximately 15.7 billion KRW) in Pre-Series A investment. The Pre-Series A round was led by Intervest, a leading domestic venture capital firm, with new participation from SV Investment and UK-based investment firm Ignite Innovation. Existing investor Capstone Partners also made a follow-up investment. The total amount of funding raised to date is $15 million (approximately 19.7 billion KRW). Eniai attracted the investment due to its proven business performance and growth potential in the domestic and U.S. hamburger markets. Eniai has supplied its hamburger cooking robot, 'Alpha Grill,' to seven brands, including Downtowner, Basburger, CJ Freshway, and Mom's Touch. Additionally, it has secured 500 pre-orders from hamburger franchises such as Lotteria, Tasty Burger, and Fault Burger. The company has also signed non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with two major U.S. hamburger franchises and is currently conducting local pilot tests for the introduction of the 'Alpha Grill.' Eniai plans to begin full-scale robot installations within 6 to 12 months. With this investment, Eniai will begin the operation of its domestic production facility, "Factory One," dedicated to the manufacturing of its 'Alpha Grill' hamburger cooking robots. The company has established its own plant in Incheon to build a stable robot production and supply system, in line with the continued growth of its domestic and international business. The production facility has a capacity to produce 1,000 units annually. Eniai is also set to showcase its cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The robot uses vision sensors to detect the surface color of the patties in real-time and assess their quality. If a patty is undercooked below the standard, the robot will immediately notify the cooking staff, ensuring systematic quality control. Eniai plans to publicly unveil this feature at the U.S. Food Service Expo in Chicago this May. Eniai CEO Hwang Geon-pil stated, "We were able to secure more investment than our initial target thanks to our strong sales performance and technological competitiveness. This year, we will not only focus on strengthening our hardware but also enhance our software capabilities to further close the technology gap in the market."

On January 28th, Nanum Vitamin, a meal care social venture, carried out a lunch delivery campaign for children at risk of food insecurity in Gwanak-gu and Gangseo-gu, in collaboration with the Dancing Astronaut Education Association. Nanum Vitamin is a social venture that operates a platform called "NabiYam," which provides meal and product discounts to families with children at risk of food insecurity who possess child meal support cards. Just a few weeks earlier, on January 8th, Nanum Vitamin, in partnership with the Seoul Business Agency and food startups, had delivered lunch boxes containing beef stew and pork ribs to approximately 70 children at risk of food insecurity living in Seoul. This latest lunch delivery campaign was also aimed at providing meal support for children in need, featuring lunch boxes with a balanced mix of meat and vegetable side dishes, along with hot packs and letters for the children. The Lunch Delivery Campaign is Supported by 20 Young Volunteers The lunch delivery campaign was made possible by the voluntary participation of 20 young volunteers. The volunteers shared, "It was rewarding to personally deliver warm lunch boxes to children at risk of food insecurity during the year-end." Kim Ha-yeon, CEO of Nanum Vitamin, who planned the campaign, said, "After the positive response we received from the first campaign held in early December, we decided to run it again. We plan to continue holding regular campaigns to provide warm meals to children at risk of food insecurity. We hope this helps children enjoy a healthy, satisfying meal." Cha Pil-geun, CEO of the Dancing Astronaut Education Association, who also supported the recruitment of volunteers and the campaign's operation, stated, "We are grateful to be able to work with Nanum Vitamin and the young volunteers who are committed to making a social impact. Moving forward, we will create more opportunities for everyone working towards a better world to feel a sense of fulfillment." Meanwhile, Nanum Vitamin has recently signed an official partnership agreement with the Youth Meal Cooperative (Cheongnyeon Bapsang Mun-Gan), enabling children to easily access free meal sharing through the NabiYam service using their child meal support cards at nationwide branches of Youth Meal Cooperative.

Nuseum Lab, a promising startup located in Seoul National University's Campus Town, has successfully opened the 'Nuseum Market' within the Shuttle Delivery app, known for its special services promoting a healthy lifestyle. This market leverages Nuseum's cutting-edge technology to provide users with opportunities to make healthy food choices through the curated selection known as 'NUSEUM's Choice.' NuseumLab officially opened 'Nuseum Market' on December 10th after signing a collaborative MOU with Shuttle Delivery on November 28th to promote health and multicultural foods. The market is filled with a variety of items focused on a healthy lifestyle, with an emphasis on prebiotics and probiotics. It offers a diverse range of food categories, including beverages, vegetables, fruits, soy/tofu, whole grains, nuts, meat, seafood, dairy products, supplements, and more. Shuttle Delivery is a leading app in South Korea that delivers a variety of global cuisines from over 1,000 restaurants to foreigners. The app operates various markets, including 'Nuseum Market,' along with bakeries, butcher shops, coffee shops, and has a user base where 90% are foreigners. Nuseum Lab, a personalized nutrition healthcare company based on Seoul National University's Nutritional Physiology and Pharmacology Laboratory, is a newly established business that officially began its corporate business in November this year. Currently, the company is in the process of research and development to enhance its services and plans to launch a service that automatically composes personalized shopping carts for individuals in February. To fund these efforts, they are raising funds through crowdfunding (nuseum-lab.com). Kim Jiyoung, the CEO, explained the importance of gut microbiota in our health, affecting nutrient absorption, metabolism, immune function regulation, inflammation control, and mental health. She emphasized that 'Nuseum Market' aims to support the healthy habitation of beneficial microorganisms in the body by providing a variety of foods rich in prebiotics and probiotics. CEO Kim expressed hopes that Shuttle Delivery users can effectively manage chronic diseases and mental health through 'NUSEUM's Choice,' which represents Nuseum's advanced technology.

Seoul National University's Nutrition Physiology and Pharmacology Research Lab-based personalized nutrition healthcare platform, Nusium Lab, and the leading delivery app, Shuttle Delivery, announced on the 29th that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the promotion of health and multicultural food. Through this agreement, the two companies plan to collaborate on various initiatives. Shuttle Delivery will open the NusiumMarket on its app, share information related to the development of health and multicultural food delivery platforms, and engage in ongoing cooperation for platform development. Nusium Lab CEO Kim Ji-young stated, "Everyone should have access to delicious and nutritious food tailored to individuals, regardless of specific health conditions or ethnicity." She added, "Through collaboration with Shuttle Delivery, we aim to reach more people and have a substantial impact on the lives of people worldwide." Jason Bute, Co-founder of Shuttle Delivery, expressed his satisfaction with the collaboration, saying, "I am delighted to work with Nusium to enhance diversity and health in the food industry." He emphasized the shared vision of creating a more inclusive and accessible food system, which naturally led to the signing of this agreement. This collaboration comes at a time when there is an increasing demand for health and multicultural foods. According to a 2023 survey by the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), 71.4% of domestic consumers expressed interest in foreign foods. Additionally, the number of consumers dining out for foreign foods increased by 10% compared to 2022. Jason Bute mentioned, "We are committed to providing the best delivery experience to our customers," and through collaboration with Nusium, they aim to achieve their goal by offering diverse, healthy, and delicious food options. The agreement between Nusium Lab and Shuttle Delivery represents a positive development in making a more diverse and accessible food system available to people with various health conditions. The collaboration is expected to enhance diversity and health in the food industry, making a practical impact on the lives of people globally. Located in Seoul National University's campus town, Nusium Lab, based on the Nutrition Physiology and Pharmacology Research Lab, is a startup that recently opened as a corporate entity in November. They have been preparing for innovative business initiatives, intending to provide services that offer personalized nutritional information related to purchasing goods through a new commerce platform. Nusium received recognition for its innovative vision and business model, winning the Startup Spark Award at the Idea + Innovation Pitch Competition held during the Korea Innovation Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution's Defy Conference 2023. With its innovative vision and successful evaluation of its business model, Nusium's service, automatically assembling personalized shopping baskets, is set to be launched in February. The company is preparing for crowdfunding to support this launch. Shuttle Delivery is a prominent delivery app targeting foreigners in South Korea, offering a diverse range of international cuisines from over 1,000 restaurants. The company is dedicated to providing the best delivery experience to customers and continually improving its services.

The deep tech startup announced on the 20th that it has secured seed investment from FuturePlay, with the exact amount undisclosed. The company, which received the CES 2024 Innovation Award just four months after its founding in July, originated from the research lab of Professor Kim Yoon-young at Seoul National University. The team includes experts in mechanism autonomous design technology, such as CEO Kim Jung-ho and technical founder Kim Yoon-young, along with engineers holding master's and doctoral degrees from Seoul National University and Hanyang University. Mechanism autonomous design technology involves automating the design of robots and mechanical devices through a "stem mechanism." The company is developing an AI-based software called 'Metius.' According to the company, they use their proprietary physics-based stem mechanism technology to extract the optimal mechanisms that satisfy customer performance requirements beyond the scope of human creativity. CEO Kim Jung-ho, a graduate of Hanyang University's Department of Mechanical Engineering, has been involved in the Multi-Physics System Design Lab at Seoul National University after graduation, specializing in mechanism autonomous design technology. Kim stated, "There's no need to admire the AI Jarvis used in making the Iron Man suit only in movies." He added, "Ideaship will develop and establish a high-performance design AI and manufacturing infrastructure to create an optimized smart design and manufacturing system." Choi Jae-woong, FuturePlay Executive Vice President leading the investment, commented, "The next 10 years will witness a design revolution driven by the advancement of autonomous driving, electrification, and robotics, resulting in the emergence of previously nonexistent mechanical devices." He emphasized the company's significant strength in generating design data that surpasses the creativity of human designers within the range of meeting the dynamic performance demanded by clients. He further stated, "By combining this secured data with generative AI, we believe it can change the paradigm of human-centered design."

NUSEUM, a new e-commerce platform providing personalized nutritional information related to product purchases, achieved notable success at the KIC.D.C Defy Conference 2023. The company garnered attention by winning the Startup Spark Award (1st place) at the Idea ⬝ Innovation Pitch Competition held during the conference in Washington D.C. The innovative business idea presented by NUSEUM received recognition at this prestigious event. NUSEUM, a resident company in the Seoul National University Campus Town Business Division, offers a tailored nutritional e-commerce platform for managing chronic conditions and mental health. The platform assists customers in selecting and purchasing healthy foods that suit their individual needs. Kim Ji-young, the company's CEO, stated, "We aim to contribute to creating a healthy society by forming lifelong healthy eating habits, alleviating health inequalities caused by social and economic factors, addressing global health issues, safeguarding customers' health rights, and creating a disease-free world through personalized nutrition." With these accomplishments, NUSEUM is now on the path of global business expansion and further success. The company is expected to continue leading the industry with its innovative approach, providing the value of a healthy life to more people.

APGreen, an incubated startup at the Seoul Campus Town Business Unit, achieved a remarkable success at the Seoul Campus Town Startup Festival English IR Pitching Competition. APGreen is a company specializing in the development of on-site modular clean hydrogen production devices. They were awarded the Excellence Award (2nd place) at this event, which recognizes their capabilities and innovative technology. The Seoul city organized this startup festival as its first-ever event conducted entirely in English, providing an opportunity for participating companies to effectively communicate their business ideas to a global audience of investors. Each participant had 7 minutes to present their business concept and then had a 7-minute question-and-answer session with the judging panel. The competition featured a panel of six startup experts, including accelerators and investors. APGreen seized this moment of honor to showcase their innovative technology and their passion and efforts for entering the global market. APGreen is a company with experience in the hydrogen liquefaction industry and entrepreneurial knowledge. They have successfully secured the foundational technology for clean hydrogen production in Korea without carbon dioxide emissions. Moreover, they aim to expand their presence in international markets such as the United States, Europe, and Southeast Asia. Founded in 2022, APGreen received pre-seed investments from domestic venture capitalists and recently secured seed investments in the United States. Building on this success, they are expanding their domestic patent applications, acquiring Ph.D.-level talent, and expanding their research facilities to accelerate their initial minimum viable product (MVP) production. APGreen's success exemplifies the growing presence and global recognition of South Korean startup companies. We look forward to APGreen achieving even greater growth and success in the future.

In October 20th, the social venture 'Nanum Vitamin' held a plaque unveiling event with the first branch of the kind store, 'Coffee Planet.' Nanum Vitamin is a social venture that provides a platform service using digital technology to solve the inconvenience of the meal infrastructure that undernourished children have faced. Through the Nanum Vitamin service, 'Nabi Yam,' they selected the store 'Coffee Planet,' which has shared the most with undernourished children, as the first kind store and held a plaque unveiling event. This plaque unveiling event was supported by SK Telecom and the Seoul Business Agency (SBA). Nanum Vitamin is participating in SKT ESG Korea 2023 to practice ESG together. The SBA Seoul Economic Promotion Institute supported the preparation of the Nanum Vitamin plaque unveiling event through collaboration with large companies and startup open call support projects. Shim Hyun-jeong, the representative of 'Coffee Planet,' who participated in the plaque unveiling event, had a conversation with Kim Ha-yeon, the representative of Nanum Vitamin, and Director Kim Eun-seo about the experience of sharing through Nabi Yam and the future direction. As they proceeded with the plaque unveiling event as the first kind store, they received stickers and store signs to make it easier for children to find the store. Kim Ha-yeon, the representative of Nanum Vitamin, stated, "This plaque unveiling event was a more meaningful day as we were with the owner of Coffee Planet, who participated the most in sharing. I believe that not only children but also more people will find and practice kind consumption in their daily lives through the kind stores of Nabi Yam, like the warm-hearted owner of Coffee Planet. I hope that many local store owners will join us as well." If you want to join the Nabi Yam store, you can check it on the Nanum Vitamin website. Participating stores can share meals with undernourished children for free, provide discounts, services, or participate without any burden in the desired way.