The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that a record 2,626 teams from around the world have applied to participate in the 2025 K-Startup Grand Challenge, marking a significant milestone for Korea’s flagship startup competition.

The 2025 application numbers represent a dramatic increase from the previous year, with applications rising more than 1.5 times compared to 2024. This surge has created an intensely competitive environment, with a selection ratio of 32.8 to 1 based on the program’s plan to select 80 teams. For comparison, the 2024 competition saw 1,705 teams competing for 40 spots, resulting in a 42.6 to 1 competition ratio.

The geographic distribution of applicants reflects the program’s truly global reach, with Asia leading at 42.7% of applications, followed by Africa at 31.1%, the Americas at 10.7%, and Europe at 8.2%. Sector analysis reveals that information and communications technology and software dominate the applicant pool at 29.6%, followed by food and agriculture at 12.5%, and healthcare and biotechnology at 11.4%.

The quality of applicants demonstrates the program’s growing reputation among established startups. An impressive 61.5% of applicants have secured investment, 70.6% have recorded sales, and 45.3% maintain organizational teams of six or more members. Notable examples include a French company providing AI-based cybersecurity solutions currently collaborating with a major French energy corporation, and a Taiwanese precision diagnostics platform serving over 600 users with its simple food allergy testing kit.

Selected companies will enter the domestic settlement support program starting at the end of July, which includes expert consulting on Korean market exploration and localization strategies, assistance with visa acquisition and business incorporation, and business meetings with domestic companies and investors. Those chosen as top-performing companies at the demo day held during COMEUP in December will be awarded up to KRW 100 million in prize money.

The K-Startup Grand Challenge operates as part of the ministry’s broader inbound startup policy launched in 2024. Through various programs including K-Scouter, Foreign Startup Commercialization Support, and the Startup Korea Special Visa, the ministry has identified and supported 88 foreign-founded startups to date. These companies have collectively achieved KRW 40.4 billion in investment attraction, created 59 jobs, and generated KRW 10.6 billion in sales.

The K-Scouter program designates private investors and others with global networks as “scouters” to identify and attract foreign startups interested in entering the Korean market. Foreign Startup Commercialization Support provides up to KRW 60 million in commercialization funding with streamlined processes conducted entirely in English and simplified documentation requirements, reducing forms from 15 to 6. The Startup Korea Special Visa minimizes traditional quantitative requirements such as academic background, focusing instead on business potential and innovation through private review panel evaluations before ministry recommendation to the Ministry of Justice.

Kyung-won Cho, Director General for Startup Policy, emphasized the strategic importance of the initiative, stating that “actively attracting outstanding foreign startups injects new growth momentum into Korea’s startup ecosystem.” He added that the ministry looks forward to “seeing a strong inflow of excellent foreign startups into the country through the 2025 K-Startup Grand Challenge.”

The ministry attributes the surge in applications to the effectiveness of its proactive inbound startup policies and expects continued growth in foreign startup participation in Korea’s expanding ecosystem. The K-Startup Grand Challenge, launched in 2016, represents Korea’s largest global startup competition, designed to support international companies in exploring the Korean market and establishing domestic operations.