Press

The Daejeon Creative Economy Innovation Center (Director Kim Jung-soo) announced on the 27th that it is conducting the first phase idea validation process for the '2021 Social Impact Changers 2nd cohort,' which aims to discover and nurture technology-based social ventures in Daejeon. The 'Social Impact Changers,' a cohort-based program first introduced last year for systematic social venture development, is a 12-week program that discovers and nurtures social ventures that solve social problems based on technological capabilities and ideas in Daejeon. In the first cohort that ended last year, a total of 21 teams completed the training, and among them, 5 teams attracted investments ranging from 10 million to 300 million won, and are currently expanding their businesses through various partnerships with major companies such as SK. Additionally, the beneficiary companies of social venture support projects including the 'Social Impact Changers 1st cohort' cultivated by the Daejeon Innovation Center totaled 38 companies, creating 146 jobs and achieving approximately 5 billion won in sales. Currently, the 2nd cohort has 30 technology-based (prospective) social ventures in Daejeon with 7 years or less of operation participating, and through the first phase idea validation process, they are deriving perspectives on social issues and concretizing technology-based solutions and business models. Subsequently, 20 teams will be selected through interim presentations, and intensive support for business model advancement will be provided through phase 2 advancement, along with one-on-one matching with impact investors and mentoring on skill sets necessary for business operations through networking. This process is conducted with Underdogs, a practical startup specialized education institution. The Social Impact Changers 2nd cohort will conclude with a final performance sharing session and an IR demo day for VC investors. After the program ends, it will provide opportunities for sustained investment attraction while linking follow-up projects such as office space support and testbed support. Director Kim Jung-soo of the Daejeon Innovation Center expressed expectations, saying, 'We will continue to provide various support so that technology-based social ventures can more stably grow their businesses in Daejeon,' and 'I hope that more social ventures will be newly born in Daejeon.'