The Korea Technology Finance Corporation (Korea Technology Finance Corporation, Chairman Jong-ho Kim, hereinafter referred to as “KIBO”) announced on Monday the 12th that it has established a “Silicon Valley Branch” in Silicon Valley, USA, and held the “Silicon Valley AI Startup Forum” there.
The newly established Silicon Valley branch is Kibo's second overseas branch following the Singapore branch that opened in June of last year, and will be operated together with major affiliated organizations in the 'Startup and Venture Campus (SVC)' established by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups in Silicon Valley.
Silicon Valley is a hub for cutting-edge industries like AI, semiconductors, and digital healthcare, and is considered an innovation hub with a global startup ecosystem. Through its Silicon Valley branch, Kibo plans to provide close support for Korean startups and venture companies entering the North American market. Through this, it will systematically support the overseas market establishment and global scale-up of Korean innovative companies.
To commemorate the branch's opening, Kibo held the Silicon Valley AI Startup Forum on Thursday, the 8th, where it discussed collaboration with the global innovation ecosystem, focusing on AI technology companies. Approximately 50 participants, including domestic financial institutions, startups, and overseas venture capitalists operating in the region, shared global technology trends and strategies for entering the North American market.
In the presentation session, Stephen Kim, President of NOTA's US subsidiary, and Dongjun Cha, Managing Partner of Higher Life Ventures, presented AI-based global expansion strategies and case studies. Kibo also explained the direction of financial support and the role of policy to ensure AI companies' overseas expansion strategies are realized on the ground, focusing on increasing the feasibility of these strategies.
The panel discussion that followed was attended by FLITTO CEO Lee Jeong-su, Quantum Prime Ventures Managing Partner Kim Beom-su, VESSL AI CEO Ahn Jae-man, and Soundable Health CEO Song Ji-young, who shared in-depth opinions on challenges that arise in the scale-up process of small and medium-sized enterprises in the AI and digital healthcare fields, as well as cooperation plans in terms of investment, finance, and commercialization.
Additionally, Kibo signed business agreements with Shinhan Bank and Hanmi Bank on the same day. Through these agreements, Kibo will strengthen its financial and guarantee support with Shinhan Bank for companies entering the North American market, while strengthening its North American investment network and cooperation with Hanmi Bank, thereby actively supporting the establishment of Korean companies in the North American market.
Kim Jong-ho, CEO of Kibo, said, “Silicon Valley is a center of concentrated global innovation and a strategic base for domestic technology companies to expand overseas.” He added, “Based on our Silicon Valley location, Kibo will expand cooperation with the global startup ecosystem and systematically support the global growth of small and medium-sized venture companies, including artificial intelligence technology companies.”
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