Gumi mayor attends Seoul forum to pitch city as hub for youth startups in future industries

Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, said Monday it had taken part in the "Next Local Regional and Generational Cooperation Forum" held at the Design Hall of Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul to discuss ways to expand cooperation with the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

The forum, held Friday, was organized as part of Seoul's Next Local program — a startup support initiative linking the capital with regional cities — to give young and middle-aged startup teams and local government leaders a chance to share business results and regional growth potential.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Gumi Mayor Kim Jang-ho and the heads of five other local governments attended, along with startup team leaders and participants, bringing the total to about 150 people.

Participants shared outcomes from the Next Local program and startup growth stories, exchanged expectations and impressions by region, and agreed to strengthen cooperation so that ideas and technology from the greater Seoul area can combine with regional resources and industrial foundations to generate new jobs and businesses.

Seoul and Gumi are expanding cooperation on direct agricultural and livestock product sales and youth policy, and plan to broaden distribution channels for local farm produce through the 2026 Gumi Local Food Festa, scheduled for September.

At the forum, Mayor Kim introduced investment plans totaling 19 trillion won ($13.4 billion) that Samsung Electronics and Samsung SDS have announced for Gumi, and said the city would actively support startup and investment opportunities for Seoul youth in future industries.

Gumi has built up more than half a century of electronics and machinery manufacturing expertise. It is also home to the only semiconductor national advanced strategic industry complex outside the greater Seoul area, a defense industry innovation cluster, and a business ecosystem centered on robotics, automation and smart factory companies.

By linking Seoul's research and development capabilities with Gumi's manufacturing base, the two cities aim to support technology startups and on-site demonstration projects for Seoul youth in future industries such as AI, robotics and semiconductors.

Gumi also plans to build on its accumulated experience cooperating with Seoul on local food and youth startups to expand exchanges into future industries, tourism and culture, and to continue developing new joint projects that can contribute to balanced regional development and counter population decline in rural areas.

"We will actively work to expand our cooperation with Seoul beyond local food and youth startups into future industries — including AI, robotics, semiconductors and defense — so that young people from Seoul can find new growth opportunities in Gumi," Mayor Kim said.