Minister Oh Youngju of the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups announced on the 21st that 152 Korean corporations won 210 innovation awards at the world's largest IT and electronics fair, CES 2025. This marks the highest number of awards ever won by South Korea, achieving the top position globally by country. The total number of innovation awards announced at CES 2025 was about 458, with Korean corporations winning approximately 46% of them.
Among these, 128 small and medium enterprises won a total of 133 innovation awards, accounting for 85% of all award-winning corporations. Approximately 86%, or 110 corporations, participated in the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups' support projects, such as startup commercialization, research and development (R&D), and maternal venture fund investment.
Minister Oh held a meeting at the Global Startup Center (GSC) in Gangnam District, Seoul, and made this announcement during the 'CES 2025 K-Startup Integrated Hall Participating Corporations and Award-Winning Corporations Meeting.'
The meeting was held to share the achievements of the corporations that won innovation awards at CES 2025, which took place in Las Vegas, United States, from Jan. 7 to Jan. 10 (local time), while also reviewing the global innovation technology trends presented at CES.
A total of over 50 corporations participated in CES 2025, including 20 award-winning corporations and those participating in the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups' 'K-Startup Integrated Hall.'
The Consumer Technology Association (CTA), the host of CES, announced 34 Best of Innovation awards for the most innovative technologies and products in various fields, with domestic corporations winning half of the total, totaling 17.
Five small and medium enterprises, including Sierra Base Co. (smart city), Ghost Pass Co. (fintech), Suprema AI Co. (embedded technology), and Poscom Co. (human security), were honored with the Best of Innovation awards, demonstrating the strength of 'K-Startup,' according to the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups.
During the meeting, Yoo Soo-yeon, the CEO of Nation A, who won two innovation awards at CES for two consecutive years, introduced the award-winning products to attendees and shared the achievements from CES.
Jang Seung-woong, CEO of Ten Minds Co., a sleep technology company incorporating artificial intelligence (AI), shared his experiences of winning a total of five CES innovation awards with junior entrepreneurs, discussing the know-how that enabled them to venture into and grow in international markets.
Minister Oh noted, 'The success of our venture and startup corporations at CES 2025 shows the limitless potential for South Korea to lead in future markets,' adding, 'We will continue to strive to provide the momentum for 'K-Startups' to advance further.'