The InSaar EU hub continues to take shape: From September 18-22, eleven Korean startups gathered for an international meeting in Saarbrücken to identify the most promising companies for settling in Saarland. Also gwSaar participated.
In line with the agreement signed in July between KIST Europe (Korean Institute of Science and Technology) and gwSaar (Saarland Economic Promotion Corporation) to establish an EU hub for Korean startups in Saarland, the representatives of eleven innovative young Korean companies completed a multi-day introduction and selection programme in Saarbrücken and its surroundings. This included companies dealing with AI developments for health diagnostics, smartphone applications and 3D recognition in the field of human-robot interaction.
During their visit, the startups went through a so-called `boot camp` aiming at making it easier for them to enter the European market and enthuse them for Saarland as a business location. In concrete terms, the young entrepreneurs presented their services and received advice on settling, financing and the establishment of international networks. At several locations (DFKI, EUSMAT, East Side Fab), they learned about locational assets and cooperation opportunities in Saarland. In the coming weeks and months, the startups will now have the opportunity to concretise their internationalization concepts.
`The aim of the process that has now started is to select several startups in the next few months and to prepare them individually for settlement in Saarland in an Expansion Camp. In doing so, gwSaar creates a bridgehead for Korean startups in Germany,` says Thomas Schuck, Managing Director of gwSaar.
The InSaar EU Hub
The programme is developed and implemented by gwSaar, KIST Europe, gwSaar’s Korean partner, ipartners, and the law firm Martin Bernhardt in cooperation with other Saarland players. The Korean startups are sponsored by the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK). At the end of May, Korea’s largest bank decided to work closely with Saarland. More than 600 startups are in the bank´s funding portfolio. The best should be supported in their internationalization process in the EU, which should start from Saarland.
