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Roh Yong-seok, First Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups, poses for a group photo with participants at a meeting on the AI Startup Unicorn Growth Strategy held at Wrtn Technologies in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on Oct. 29. Noh is fourth from left, while Park Min-jun, CEO of Wrtn Technologies, is sixth from right.

As global competition intensifies for leadership in artificial intelligence (AI) technology and commercialization, the South Korean government is stepping up comprehensive support to help domestic AI startups grow into global unicorns.

Roh Yong-seok, First Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups, visited Wrtn Technologies, a Seoul-based AI unicorn company, on Oct. 29 and held a meeting with industry representatives to gather feedback for the government's AI Startup Unicorn Growth Strategy.

The meeting was organized to improve the effectiveness of the AI unicorn development strategy being prepared in cooperation with the National AI Strategy Committee. Roh was joined by AI startup executives and industry experts to discuss practical obstacles to business growth.

The event began with a presentation of the draft strategy and a case study of Wrtn Technologies, which achieved unicorn status in August after its valuation exceeded 1 trillion won. During the discussion that followed, startup executives called for stronger links to government and public-sector procurement, expanded opportunities to demonstrate and validate new technologies, better connections with domestic and overseas investors, and infrastructure to support entry into global markets.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to incorporate the feedback into a more refined, comprehensive support framework covering the entire growth cycle, from early-stage identification and innovative growth to global expansion. The final strategy is expected to be officially announced soon.

"Fostering AI startups into global unicorns is the starting point for South Korea's leap toward becoming one of the world's top three AI powers," Roh said. "We will spare no effort in providing policy support to ensure that innovative startups' ambitions translate into tangible achievements on the global stage."

                                                                                                                Oh Se-eun