Jeonbuk Climate Tech Startup Acceleration Program 'SWITCH' Launched

Jeonbuk Climatetech Startup Nurturing ‘SWITCH’ Growth Track Kick-off Successfully Concluded The kick-off event for the growth track of ‘SWITCH’, a Jeonbuk climatetech startup growth support program jointly operated by Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province, Jeonbuk Technopark, and accelerator Sopung Connect, was successfully held on the 25th at the Jeonju Signature Hotel Art Hall. The SWITCH program, now in its second year, consists of a growth track that derives tangible results through Proof of Concept (PoC) with companies, and a new track that supports technology verification for climatetech startups established less than 7 years ago. Notably, SungEel Hi-Tech is participating as a corporate partner in this growth track, engaging in close collaboration with the selected startups. Among the companies that applied from various climatetech sectors such as activated carbon recycling, battery discharge hardware/software, material/purification/adsorption/separation, and hazardous substance reduction technologies, a total of 5 teams – Wintech Globis, Cosolus, Mona, Unbridge, and HS – were finally selected to participate in the growth track. The event began with an opening speech by Shin Hyun-young, Head of Startup Support Division at Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province, followed by an introduction to the SWITCH program and partner company SungEel Hi-Tech. Subsequently, the participating companies presented their PoC implementation proposals, taking the first step towards collaboration. The highlight of the event was the ‘PoC Task Specification Workshop’. Under the supervision of WowD Lab, startups and SungEel Hi-Tech's on-site departments met directly to define actual collaborative tasks and jointly discuss Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and implementation plans. Through this, each startup identified PoC tasks tailored to their company's characteristics and established a solid foundation for collaboration with SungEel Hi-Tech. The organizing institutions plan to resolve the difficulties climatetech startups face during their growth and strengthen their connection with the local industrial ecosystem through this program. Choi Kyung-hee, CEO of Sopung Connect, stated that beyond mere support, the program aims for companies and startups to collaborate to create tangible business outcomes and lay the groundwork for Jeonbuk climatetech companies to leap into the global market. Lee Gyu-taek, Director of Jeonbuk Technopark, also emphasized that SWITCH will serve as a demonstration platform directly connecting local industrial sites with startup technologies, contributing to the rapid commercialization of startups and establishing Jeonbuk as a climatetech testbed.