SK has selected nine companies to participate in its social venture development program, the 'SK Impact Booster.'
On July 21, SK's social enterprise, Happy Narae, held an orientation at the SK Serin Building in Jongno, Seoul, for the selected companies, announcing the start of business collaboration and growth support.
Launched in May, the SK Impact Booster program aims to discover social ventures that address social issues while pursuing profitability, providing opportunities for collaboration with SK member companies and business support funds. It targets social ventures that have moved beyond the startup phase and are in a growth stage.
The selected companies will receive 10 million won in business support, up to 60 million won for proof of concept (PoC) funding when collaborating with SK member companies, expert mentoring in various fields, and connections for legal, public relations, and investment support.
More than 300 social ventures applied for the program, which closed on June 3. SK evaluated the applicants through a three-stage process, including expert document review, assessments by SK member company departments, and interviews, ultimately selecting nine companies based on their growth potential and synergy with SK member companies.
The final selected companies are Deeping Sauce, Starstech, Aim Intelligence, Entz, NT, All Do One, Jaclyn, TerraCl, and First Lab.
Representatives from SK Hynix, SK Telecom, SK Innovation, SK Eco Plant, and SK Discovery attended the orientation.
During one-on-one meetings, the selected companies and SK member representatives shared technology and business information and discussed the direction of the proof of concept projects.
SK plans to connect the business needs of its member companies with the technologies of the selected firms to develop collaborative projects in areas such as AI implementation, carbon reduction, resource recycling, and the removal of harmful substances in industrial settings.
Jo Min-young, head of the SV Innovation Division at Happy Narae, stated, "We will connect the selected companies with SK member companies to ensure they receive the business collaboration and funding support they need at this growth stage."
Happy Narae, established by SK, is a social enterprise that uses all its profits to create social value. It operates projects to support social venture development, assist children in need, and expand market access for social enterprises.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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