South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT and the Innopolis Foundation said on Wednesday they will create a new R&D Special Zone Fund to support the founding and growth of deep tech companies in R&D special zones.

The special zone fund has contributed to revitalising regional economies and technological innovation. Since 2006, 11 funds have been created in stages, investing a total of 453.6 billion won in 267 companies.

The ministry and the foundation will first create the 20 billion won First Deep Fund this year, 2026, and invest mainly in early-stage deep tech startups. The fund’s operating period will be extended to 10 to 12 years from the existing 8 years, comprising 4 years of investment and 4 years of recovery.

From 2027, the ministry and the foundation also plan to create in stages the 100 billion won Scale-up Fund, which will invest in research institute companies and firms supported under the special zone fostering programme (R&BD).

First Vice Minister Hyuk-chae Koo (구혁채) said, "Through this new fund, we will actively support the revitalisation of regional deep tech startups that use research outcomes from special zones, and help enable the birth of regional-based global unicorn companies with unrivalled technological advantages."