The ASEAN-Korea Centre (AKC) hosted the “ASEAN-Korea Startup Week 2025” at the Ondream Society in Seoul on 20-24 October. Launched in 2018, the annual program aims to provide promising early-stage startups in ASEAN with opportunities for investment attraction.

In this year’s Startup Week, 30 startups selected through the recommendations by the 10 ASEAN Embassies in Korea and ASEAN Coordinating Committee on Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (ACCMSME) underwent a rigorous two-day acceleration program focusing on cross-border partnership, and followed by a Networking Session (22 Oct) with key stakeholders from the Korean startup ecosystem.

The Networking session featured Opening Remarks by H.E. Kim Jae-shin, Secretary General of AKC and Congratulatory Remarks by H.E. Wong Kai Jiun, Ambassador of Singapore to Korea and Chair of ASEAN Committee in Seoul. Next, special lectures were delivered by Mr. Ea Hai Khov, Assistant Director of the Enterprise and Stakeholders Engagement Division at the ASEAN Secretariat and Mr. Choi Young-deok, CEO of FoodTech startup Togi, providing diverse insights on ASEAN’s startup support policies and ASEAN-Korea startup cooperation.

Through the program, AKC offered lectures on Korea’s startup ecosystem trends, market entry best practices, and mentoring on IR pitching and strategic planning. To broaden participants’ perspectives, technical visits took place to key innovation hubs, namely the Daegu Future Innovation Technology Expo and the Seoul AI Smart City Center, allowing startups to experience Korea’s advanced industries firsthand.