[For more diverse company information on startups mentioned in this article, please visit Unicorn Factory's Big Data Platform 'Data Lab'.]
The 'K-Space Forum', which will lead the creation of a Korean-style New Space ecosystem, held its first official general meeting to introduce its future activity plans and member companies, signaling the formal launch of private-led space industry cooperation.
Over 100 officials from space companies, investment and financial institutional investors, education and public sector institutional investors, the Army and Air Force, and other related fields attended the general meeting held on the 7th at Front One in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Attendees included Democratic Party of Korea's Hwang Jeong-a·Park Ji-hye (Rep.), Forum Chair Lee Bok-jik of Seoul National University's Aerospace Engineering Joo Gong-hak-gwa (Prof.), Choi Won-guk of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) Jeon Buk-bun (Director), Jeong Kwan-woo, Section Chief of the Space Industry Infrastructure Division at the Space Administration, Kang Ho-byeong, CEO of MoneyToday, and others. They shared the latest trends in the space industry and conducted networking for business cooperation.
The K-Space Forum is an advisory body launched by MoneyToday's startup media platform 'Unicorn Factory' to revitalize South Korea's space industry. Co-operated with the Global Digital Innovation Network (GDIN), its goal is to connect talent, capital, and technology in the space sector through private leadership to create national industrial and economic synergy.
Following the establishment of an operations committee in February, the forum officially launched with its first global conference in April, attended by over 200 people. It has now grown into an advisory body comprising various private ecosystem players, including over 50 large- and mid-sized companies, venture startups, accelerators (ACs), and venture capital firms (VCs).
In his opening remarks, Hwang Jeong-a (Rep.) stated, "While space was once the domain of scientific curiosity, it is now expanding infinitely into the realms of economy, industry, and national defense. If we focus our capabilities, I am confident that South Korea can enter the ranks of the world's top five space powers. We will provide solid support through laws, budgets, and policies."
Park Ji-hye (Rep.) added, "It is highly encouraging that experts from various fields gather around the single theme of space to exchange ideas. This kind of solidarity and communication will open new opportunities for South Korea's space industry and serve as a solid foundation for nurturing the future potential of our technology."
"Contracts create industries; connections build ecosystems."
In a keynote speech titled "Lessons from the Global Space Startup Ecosystem and the Role of the K-Space Forum," Lee Bok-jik (Prof.) defined this year as "a turning point in New Space where the private space economy has been integrated into mainstream capital markets." He explained that SpaceX achieved a market capitalization of approximately 2 trillion won (about 3,000 trillion won) shortly after its NASDAQ listing, and global space investment reached a record quarterly high of $36 billion (about 55 trillion won) in the first quarter of this year. This indicates that space is expanding beyond observation and communication into an "AI infrastructure space."
Regarding South Korea's current situation, he acknowledged achievements such as a 1 trillion won R&D budget for this year, an expansion of the New Space Fund by 200 billion won, and the successful fourth launch of the privately led Nuri rocket. However, he noted that since 70–80% of space development is centered around government-funded research institutes, the market foundation for private companies to generate recurring revenue remains weak.
The professor emphasized, "If a structure persists where there are projects but insufficient markets, even a 1 trillion won budget will ultimately fail to convert into industry. Contracts create industries, and connections build ecosystems. A shift from 'technological self-reliance' to 'market self-reliance' is necessary."
He stressed that the K-Space Forum would focus on its roles as an agenda-setter, neutral connector, and capital gateway as a "connective tissue" linking industry, academia, research, and government. The professor stated, "The government will act as the first customer, capital as a growth partner, and the K-Space Forum as the connector bridging them."
Through this general meeting, the K-Space Forum plans to regularize private networking sessions four times annually and separately operate R&D sessions for investors and startups twice a year. Additionally, it is scheduled to host its flagship forum at COEX in Seoul this October.
The forum aims to broaden its industrial focus, which has previously been concentrated on launch vehicles, to cover the entire value chain including satellite manufacturing and operations, ground station infrastructure, data analysis and services, and supply chains for materials, components, and equipment (so-bu-jang). This approach seeks to connect the needs and capabilities of each stakeholder.
Kang Ho-byeong (CEO) remarked, "The K-Space Forum is a unique convergence platform in South Korea where industry, academia, research, government, the investment sector, and political circles all gather. With a tightly built network established, I am confident that if we tackle our challenges one by one, it will become a milestone for opening an excellent future for South Korea's space industry."
[MoneyToday startup media platform 'Unicorn Factory']
in FUTURE
