Daejeon City launches startup initiative to foster 75 companies

Daejeon City has launched the ‘2026 Daejeon Startup City Creation Project’ to foster 75 selected companies. Managed by the Daejeon Creative Economy Innovation Center and supported by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the initiative aims to decentralize the startup ecosystem from the Seoul metropolitan area. Priority is given to companies in the bio-pharmaceutical, space/defense, and AI/robotics sectors. Selected firms will receive tiered commercialization funding and growth programs including technical verification and investment attraction.

In the biotechnology sector, a collaborative project to build an ‘Advanced Bio Universal Autonomous Laboratory (SDL)’ has entered its execution phase. This 8.25 billion won initiative involves six institutions, including the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials and iCell, aiming to integrate precision robotics into cell culture processes. Additionally, iCell reported positive one-year clinical follow-up results for ‘Mucon,’ an iPSC-derived cartilage cell therapy, showing cartilage thickness recovery in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Separately, the Gwangju Creative Economy Innovation Center is hosting the first round of the ‘2026 Innovative Small Business National Audition’ for the Honam region, providing customized consulting and support to help selected small businesses expand into national markets.