Academic societies in the field of small and medium-sized ventures will gather to discuss future growth plans for small and medium-sized enterprises, including artificial intelligence (AI), artificial intelligence transformation (AX), scale-up strategies, and regulatory innovation.
The Korea SMEs & Startups Institute said on the 18th that, together with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, it will host the 4th Integrated Conference on Small and Medium Venture Research.
The event, to be held on the 25th, is organized under the theme "Growth for all, innovative transformation of K-SMEs and ventures" to bring together industry, academia, and policymakers to discuss innovation strategies and future policy agendas for small and medium-sized ventures. Eight academic societies will participate, including the Korea Society of Entrepreneurship, the Korea Society of Small and Medium Business Policy, the Korean Law and Economics Association, the Korean Association for Public Policy, the Korean Academy of Distribution and Marketing Science, the Korean Association for Policy Studies, the Korea Academy of Small Business, and the Korea Society of Startups.
The conference consists of three sessions: ▲ Global growth and scale-up strategies ▲ SME collaboration ecosystems and joint innovation in the era of AI, AX, and digital transformation (DX) ▲ The digital economy and a fair ecosystem.
Session 1 will feature presentations and discussions on topics such as growth opportunities for SMEs in the AI era, open-innovation-based global expansion, innovative financing systems, and ways to develop the distribution ecosystem in a digital transformation environment.
Session 2 is the core program of the conference, focusing on ways to promote SMEs' AI, AX, and DX transitions and to build a cooperation-based innovation ecosystem. Session 3 will address AI regulatory improvements, a shift in policy paradigms, manufacturing and distribution innovation, and measures to ensure the reliability of the AX ecosystem.
Research Fellow Kim Hee-seon of the Korea SMEs & Startups Institute will deliver the keynote, introducing DX and AX innovation cases of cooperatives in Northern Italy. Kim will analyze cases in which cooperatives and shared platforms supplemented technologies and infrastructure that individual corporations find difficult to secure, and will present policy implications.
Ko Su-jin, head of innovation policy at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, will present support measures for DX and AX based on industry-specific cooperatives. She will explain the need for digital transformation that reflects industry characteristics and on-site demand, and will introduce a cooperative-led AX collaboration model leveraging cooperative networks along with capacity-building plans.
Next, Korea Society of Startups President Kim Young-tae will chair a presidents' roundtable on the theme "In the AI and AX era, strategies to build a joint innovation ecosystem for SMEs."
Participants will assess the technology, workforce, and expense burdens SMEs face in the AI and AX transition, and will discuss response strategies and policy directions through building shared digital infrastructure, data collaboration, platform utilization, and regulatory innovation.
Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI) President Cho Ju-hyun said, "AI and digital transformation are tasks that require capabilities in technology, talent, and data, as well as a foundation for cooperation," adding, "We hope this conference will connect academic research achievements and on-site corporate experience to policy, and serve as a venue to seek directions for a joint innovation ecosystem that small and medium-sized ventures can utilize together."