The government will support the domestic commercialisation of 20 teams of overseas Korean technology talent that have worked in super-gap technology fields including AI, advanced robots, bio and aerospace.

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA) held an orientation for K-TECH Pioneers (KTP) in Seoul's Myeongdong on Thursday.

KTP is a programme to respond to the outflow of top talent in national strategic technology fields and to support the return to Korea and settlement of Korean talent whose technological capabilities have been validated overseas. It will be 추진된다 in connection with the government's core policy task of securing super-gap AI leading technologies and talent.

A total of 20 teams were selected for the programme, considering regional balance, diversity across technology fields and synergy with Korea's industrial ecosystem. By region, 10 teams were selected from the U.S. West Coast, 6 from the U.S. East Coast and 4 from Asia. The technology areas cover super-gap strategic technologies centred on AI, including robotics and manufacturing AI, advanced bio, and space and aerospace.

About 100 people attended the event, including the 20 selected teams and representatives from domestic demand companies such as Hyundai Motor Group, LG Sciencepark, SK Innovation, Toss and Kakao Mobility, as well as venture capital (VC) and corporate venture capital (CVC) officials.

The event featured special lectures on entering the Korean market and startup growth strategies, introductions of the selected teams, presentations of collaboration projects with Korean companies and networking. Seong-hoon Kim (김성훈), head of UKF Korea, presented on opportunities and strategies for global Korean startup teams to enter Korea. Eugene Kim (김유진), head of SparkLabs, introduced open-innovation-based startup growth strategies.

The 20 selected teams and domestic demand companies and institutions shared collaboration projects and open-innovation plans to be pursued. Korea Credit Guarantee Fund introduced a startup-only financial support programme and ways to secure early funding. Meetups and networking were also held among the selected teams, large-company demand partners and VCs. Participating institutions discussed technology cooperation, investment and commercialisation potential.

The ministry and NIPA plan to provide a full-cycle growth support system to help the selected teams settle into Korea's advanced industry ecosystem. The teams will pursue proof of concept (PoC) projects and joint research and development with major domestic demand companies. They will also receive support such as legal, patent and accounting consulting, investment matchmaking with VCs and CVCs, and cooperation with financial institutions including Korea Credit Guarantee Fund.

Yoon-gyu Park (박윤규), head of NIPA, said he will support the entire settlement process so the selected teams can quickly take root in the Korean market and grow into global unicorn companies.

Tae-wan Park (박태완), director general for ICT Industry Policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said K-TECH Pioneers is a programme to help Korean technology startup talent proven on the global stage grow into key partners in Korea's advanced industry ecosystem. He said he hopes technology collaboration and business results between the selected teams and domestic demand institutions will quickly become visible.