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Global Startup Hub Busan with International Students! 2025 Startup Idea Competition for International Students Successfully Concludes

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that it successfully hosted the “2025 Startup Idea Competition for International Students” (hereinafter referred to as “the competition”) on September 23 at Hall 1 of BEXCO’s Exhibition Center I.

This event was hosted by Busan Metropolitan City and co-organized by the Busan Global City Foundation (CEO Jeon Yong-woo) and the Busan Startup Investment Agency (President Seo Jong-goon). It was also organized as part of the international student program at FLY ASIA 2025, Asia’s largest startup expo.

The competition was held for the first time this year with the goal of discovering and supporting innovative startup ideas from international students in Busan.

During the preliminary round held on August 21, a total of 41 teams participated, and 10 teams advanced to the finals. From September 1, the finalist teams refined their business ideas and enhanced their entrepreneurial potential through three weeks of mentoring provided by five domestic and international entrepreneurs.

In the document review stage of the preliminary round (August 21), four experts in the fields of entrepreneurship and international student affairs evaluated the teams based on creativity, potential for social impact, feasibility, and content quality, ultimately selecting 10 teams to advance to the finals.

On September 23, the final round featured intense competition among the 10 teams, and 5 teams received awards.

The final evaluation involved presentations, Q&A sessions with the judges, and on-site assessments. It was conducted by five experts in entrepreneurship and international student affairs, with each team given 10 minutes for their presentation and Q&A.

The grand prize was awarded to the team “Everyguide,” whose idea of a matching platform for international student tourists was recognized for both innovation and feasibility. They received a prize of KRW 1.5 million.

The “Green AI City” team won the Excellence Award for their idea of developing a smart heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, receiving KRW 1 million.

The “CUTY” team earned the Merit Award with their idea of an employment support application for international students, receiving KRW 750,000.

Meanwhile, the “Uniquest” and “Neko” teams were honored with Encouragement Awards for their original ideas, each receiving KRW 500,000.

This competition went beyond a simple contest, serving as an opportunity to demonstrate the potential of international students to grow as key players in Busan’s startup ecosystem. Both participants and spectators remarked that Busan left a strong impression as a city that provides international students with practical opportunities to pursue entrepreneurship.

Judge Park Jong-yeon, Director of Scaleup Ventures, commented, “It was very impressive to see international students present diverse ideas to solve social problems. If they continue to refine these ideas, I am confident that they will achieve excellent results in the future.”

Kim Gwi-ok, Director General of the Youth and Industry-Academia Bureau of Busan Metropolitan City, stated, “Through this competition, we were once again able to confirm the entrepreneurial passion and potential of our region’s international students. Going forward, Busan Metropolitan City and related startup organizations will continue to work together to build Busan as a global startup hub and actively support international students in playing a vital role in this process.”