The Ministry of SMEs and Startups held the ‘2025 Public-Private Partnership Open Innovation Performance Sharing Conference’ on the 16th at WDG in Seoul, with over 200 participants including First Vice Minister Noh Yong-seok and participating companies. They announced the selection and awarding of outstanding startups and collaborating large companies in the final round of the integrated competition.
This year, among the 120 companies participating in the public-private partnership open innovation support project, nine startups, including Amber Road, which achieved excellent results in developing and applying new products and services, received the Minister’s Award and prize money. AI startup Amber Road collaborated with EcoPro on the ‘AI-based secondary battery manufacturing process optimization’ project, developing a process optimization solution that can generate approximately 5.5 billion KRW in annual financial effects.
Food startup F&L Corporation developed a high-protein, low-sugar shake in collaboration with CJ ENM and quickly opened sales channels using CJ ENM’s marketing and sales infrastructure. Additionally, startup Forbicon, which possesses Vision AI technology, jointly developed an AI-based construction cost estimation efficiency platform with Woongin Construction.
Award-winning startups will receive not only prize money and certificates but also recommendations for the ‘Next Unicorn Project’ scale-up fund investment pool and incentives when participating in follow-up market verification support projects for open innovation. First Vice Minister Noh Yong-seok emphasized that open innovation is a key strategy that creates substantial effects such as increased productivity, new market entry, and technology development efficiency.