The startup club of Korea University’s Sejong Campus (Vice President Young Kim) won the Grand Prize (Sejong Special Self-Governing City Mayor’s Award) and the Excellence Award (Sejong Creative Economy Innovation Center Director’s Award) at the “2024 Sejong UNION Startup Idea Competition” held on November 1. The competition focused on solving regional problems in Sejong City through innovative startup ideas.

The “Sejong UNION Startup Idea Competition” is co-hosted by institutions in Sejong City, including Korea University Sejong Campus, Hongik University Sejong Campus, Korea University of Media Arts, and the Sejong Creative Economy Innovation Center. The event features top teams selected through internal competitions at each university.

The Grand Prize (Sejong Special Self-Governing City Mayor’s Award) was awarded to the EcoNex team, led by Jae-hyun Park (Class of 2023, Department of Environmental Systems Engineering). The team impressed the judges by presenting a startup idea for a “shared goods platform” aimed at addressing economic and social challenges associated with the high percentage of single-person households in Sejong City.

The Excellence Award (Sejong Creative Economy Innovation Center Director’s Award) was won by the DagaChi team, led by Su-jong Ahn (Class of 2020, Department of Electronic and Mechanical Convergence Engineering). The team proposed an idea to record bicycle road map data using autonomous vehicles, contributing to the vision of Sejong as a “smart city.”

Choi Bo-seung, Director of the Crimson Industry-University Convergence Center, stated, “I am delighted that the passion and hard work of students who pursued their entrepreneurial goals throughout the year shone brightly in this competition. We will continue to actively support the discovery and growth of outstanding entrepreneurial talent at Korea University’s Sejong Campus.”