Gangdong-gu in Seoul announced that "Startup Young Ground," an entrepreneurship development project hosted by the district and organized by the Gangdong-gu Youth Haenaem Center and Achieve Moment Co., successfully wrapped up its roughly three-month run with a final presentation Thursday.
Startup Young Ground is a hands-on startup competition that takes participants through the full arc of launching a business — from idea discovery and team formation to service planning, prototype development, minimum viable product (MVP) implementation and final presentation.
The program ran in two tracks: a startup idea competition focused on discovering and selecting business concepts, and a startup idea realization contest — a hackathon — in which teams of planners, designers and developers built MVPs together.
The hackathon drew 184 applicants across 44 teams, including high school and university students, freelancers and office workers from across the country. Of those, 15 teams that cleared the first round of judging presented their work at Thursday's final showcase, sharing their startup ideas and walking the audience through their MVP planning and development process.
The program went beyond handing out awards to top teams by putting in place follow-up support designed to help participants move toward actual business launches. Top finishers at the final showcase will receive bonus points when applying for residency at the Gangdong-gu Youth Haenaem Center, and participants can use their awards and project experience as credentials and portfolio material in future job searches or startup applications. By offering these tangible follow-on benefits, the program aimed to strengthen the motivation of young people preparing to start businesses.
The competition's impact has already extended beyond a single event: one team that won last year's Startup Young Ground went on to secure investment, demonstrating that participation can translate into real startup growth.
The district said it plans to expand support so that aspiring entrepreneurs can connect with startup talent and grow step by step — from idea development through commercialization and investment attraction.
"Through this Startup Young Ground, seeing the passion and outstanding results of the participants confirmed the entrepreneurial potential of young people," Gangdong-gu District Mayor Lee Su-hee said. "We will continue to actively discover and nurture talented entrepreneurs and build Gangdong-gu into a startup hub where young people and aspiring founders come together."
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