A Startup Venture Campus (SVC), a hub center supporting Korean startups, has opened in Silicon Valley. The SVC will house public institutions including Korea Venture Investment Corporation, Korea SMEs and Startups Agency, Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development, and Korea Technology Finance Corporation, as well as private venture capital firms.
Over the past two years, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups has prepared for the SVC opening by establishing operational directions with participation from private experts and support organizations, and negotiating program development, infrastructure sharing, and investment cooperation with resident support organizations and private institutions and companies that have already entered the local market, such as Asan Nanum Foundation, Naver, and Hyundai Motor Company.
SVC programs include proprietary programs operated by resident support organizations and external collaboration programs in partnership with Asan Nanum Foundation, Naver, Hyundai Motor Company, and others, with plans to operate dedicated programs for more than 200 Korean startups and venture capital firms annually.
It will also provide workspace that they can use locally during medium- to long-term U.S. expansion and short-term business trips. The Silicon Valley SVC is the first case of integrating the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ previously dispersed overseas bases, such as KSC and GBC, and establishing a “Startup One-Stop Support Center,” currently operating at 17 locations domestically, abroad. The Ministry plans to expand SVC to global innovation hubs such as Japan and Singapore, starting with Silicon Valley.
