Ministry of SMEs and Startups Announces COMEUP 2024 at COEX Seoul

Seoul, South Korea—The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced today that the sixth annual COMEUP global startup festival will be held at Seoul's COEX convention center on December 11-12.

This marks a venue change from its previous location at Dongdaemun Design Plaza.

The ministry expects participation from 150 startups and investors from 40 countries under the slogan "Innovation Beyond Borders," focusing on deep tech, inbound programs, and sustainable innovation.

The expanded venue at COEX provides double the space of previous years, allowing for 150 exhibition booths showcasing approximately 260 innovative startups.

India, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates will operate national pavilions at the event, while Uganda and Colombia will manage dedicated exhibition halls. 

The African Development Bank will also showcase promising African startups.

The ministry will provide visa and settlement consultation services for visiting international startups and award $400,000 prizes through the K-Startup Grand Challenge demo day.

A parallel event, the K-Global Venture Capital Summit 2024, will run from December 10 to 12 at the SKY31 Convention. 

It will feature 130 domestic and international venture capitalists and startup representatives.

The event will host 24 conference sessions focusing on global expansion and deep tech. Keynote speakers include Rebellion CEO Park Sung-hyun, who recently secured investment from Saudi Aramco's Wa'edAramco's" Seoul's Ventures and Innospace CEO Kim Su-jong.

The ministry will organize reverse pitching sessions, during which large corporations can propose collaboration opportunities to startups, particularly in carbon neutrality initiatives.

The event will coincide with the Challenge K-Startup 2024 competition finals and an awards ceremony for distinguished ventures and startups, a tradition dating back to 1997.