Seoul City and the Seoul Business Agency (SBA) said the official YouTube channel of Seoul Startup Hub, "Seop TV," surpassed 100,000 subscribers. It is the first public institution's YouTube channel specializing in the domestic startup ecosystem to reach the milestone. Seop TV also received the Silver Play Button from YouTube.
Seop TV is a channel launched in 2017 with the opening of Seoul Startup Hub Gongdeok. It has produced and provided practical startup information as content, including startup growth stories, entrepreneurship trends, and overseas expansion cases. The Seoul Business Agency said the subscriber increase stemmed from breaking away from the conventional public-agency channel model of one-way delivery of government policy and vividly capturing real overseas expansion scenes of startup founders.
As public interest in entrepreneurship has recently risen, the channel's growth has also accelerated. Seop TV's subscribers grew from about 60,000 in 2025 to more than 100,000 in just six months.
The flagship content driving the channel's growth is the "expanding globally while we're at it" series. In this content, CEOs of startups that entered overseas markets with support from Seoul Startup Hub appear in person. The participants candidly introduce the market entry process, trial and error, and results.
The content format is also differentiated from existing public-agency channels. Local influencers personally visit startups to experience and review their products and services. They also propose localization strategies that reflect local consumer trends and cultural characteristics that founders can easily miss.
A total of 20 episodes have been produced so far. It captures on-site stories of 20 startups that have entered 12 countries, including the United States, Japan, China, and Europe. The participating corporations span diverse fields, including healthcare, robotics, eco-friendly technology, AI, and aviation. By engagingly portraying how startups lacking capital and recognition take on the global market, the series has drawn interest from general viewers and entrepreneurs.
Seoul Startup Hub goes beyond simply providing office space to support the entire process of startups' global expansion. It operates acceleration, overseas proof of concept (PoC), and scale-up programs to build a stage-by-stage tailored support system. Through local networks and connections with investors, support for participation in global exhibitions, and matching with overseas buyers, it provides linked support from business development and revenue generation to attracting overseas investment.
Kim Jong-u, head of the Startup Division at the Seoul Business Agency, said, "I hope Seop TV becomes a channel that lets the world know about startups' technologies and challenges," adding, "We will support it so it can grow into a content platform representing the startup ecosystem, helping the achievements of Seoul startups reach markets around the world."