Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC) has built a cooperative system with major university-industry collaboration institutions nationwide to commercialize outstanding technologies at universities and to foster innovative startups.
Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC) said on the 7th that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with 22 university-affiliated institutions to jointly identify university technology-based innovative startups. The agreement was prepared to link universities' research achievements and technological capabilities to startups and to activate a university-centered technology startup ecosystem.
University-industry cooperation foundations and technology holdings that have capabilities in startup support and technology commercialization within universities took part in the agreement. Each institution will run joint open-call programs to promote the commercialization of promising technologies and will identify innovative startups with high growth potential to recommend to Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC).
Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC) will provide customized support programs for recommended corporations, including special guarantees for innovative startups, investment linkage, technology and management consulting, and publicity support.
The support targets are startup corporations recommended by the agreement institutions according to their own open-call criteria, including student-founded corporations, faculty-founded corporations, and companies invested in by technology holdings. Through this, the plan is to strengthen the growth base of technology-based startups born on university campuses. Each institution will operate a regular consultative body going forward to flesh out cooperative tasks, continuously manage the performance of jointly identified corporations, and strengthen the cooperative system.
Kim Hyun, head of the Seoul West Regional Headquarters at Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC), said, "This agreement will serve as a bridge so that innovative technologies do not stay within universities but come to market and lead to successful startups," adding, "Korea Technology Finance Corporation (KOTEC) will actively support the activation of a university-centered technology startup ecosystem through cooperation with university-industry cooperation foundations and technology holdings, and help innovative startups that started at universities grow into unicorn corporations."