The Korea Society would like to thank everyone for their support for the inaugural “Startup Scene: Student Ideation Competition.” The competition is a part of the Society’s corporate series, Startup Scene: Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow (hereinafter Startup Scene), proudly supported by Hanwha Life exclusively. Startup Scene is dedicated to empower the startup entrepreneurial community that encompasses the US and South Korean economic landscape.
The Startup Scene: Student Ideation Competition is designed to encourage innovative thinking, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit among Korean-American and Korean students enrolled in colleges across the United States. This year, the participants were challenged to pitch their startup that addresses expanding education access, or improving disaster relief efforts.
WINNERS
We are excited to announce the winners of the “Startup Scene: Student Ideation Competition”:
1st Place: Glowthy (School of Visual Arts)
2nd Place: Square One (Northwestern University)
3rd Place: Comitia (Yale University)
The finalists had the opportunity to share their startup ideas at the 2025 Startup Scene Annual Forum. For more information on the 2025 Startup Scene Annual Forum, please visit the Annual Forum webpage here.
Application Period
Application Period: Monday, February 17 to Sunday, March 16, 2025 (11:59 PM EDT)
Final 3 teams announcement: Monday, March 24, 2025
Final pitch and Award Ceremony: Tuesday, April 22, 2025
For any questions, please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Eligibility and Terms of Application
[How to Apply]
Please send your startup idea as a short pitch video (max. 3 minutes) and a written summary (max. 2 pages) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Your pitch should include the followings:
Pitch Video:
• A brief description of your startup ideas in the most creative way possible
• What problem you are solving, for whom, and the solution addressed
• Any innovative solutions that your business idea applies to enhance education access and disaster relief solutions.
* The video pitch will be reviewed strictly by judges internally. Top three finalists are invited to submit their video pitch to upload on the Annual Forum mobile platform for voting by participants of the annual forum.
Executive Summary (850 words)
• A brief overview of your startup ideas
• Problem Statement: What problems are you trying to solve
• Market analysis: Identify your target customers, estimation of market size, and marketing strategy
• Revenue Model: Outline how you plan to make money.
• Unique advantage: How is your idea/solution innovative?
[Eligibility]
• Students from all U.S. schools are eligible to apply.
• Individual or team applications (max.3 students per team) will be accepted.
• In alignment with Startup Scene’s mission, each team must include at least one team member of Korean heritage.
• Only currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students taking classes in U.S. schools during the 2024-25 academic school year (August 2024 – May 2025) are eligible to apply.
• We will only accept applications from student email addresses. No personal email addresses will be accepted.
• Teams do not have to comprise students from the same school; students from different schools may be included in one team.
Prizes and Terms of Participation
[Prizes]
1st place: $1000
2nd place: $800
3rd place: $500
Top 3 teams will also receive a travel stipend to attend the Startup Scene Annual Forum in NYC on April 22, 2025, titled as “Startups in Focus: Driving US-Korea Economic Synergy” at Citi Headquarters. This year’s theme of the Annual Forum is Startups in Focus: Driving US-Korea Economic Synergy.
Date: Tuesday, April 22, 2025
Venue: Citi Headquarters
388 Greenwich St
New York, NY 10013
[Terms of Participation]
Please note the following terms of participation:
• The idea cannot already have been pursued by another company.
• The idea must be developed independently by the participants and must not infringe the rights of third parties.
• Team name and short description may be published on the website and social media of The Korea Society.
• The competitors must be ready to attend the Startup Scene Annual Forum on April 22nd for their final pitch.
• There is no fee for application or competition.
• The decision of the jury is final, any legal action is precluded.
• The submitted summary and video pitch of any application will be reviewed by the staff and judges preselected by The Korea Society. Finalists must participate in the Startup Scene Annual Forum, where activities and presentations are open to the pre-registered attendees of the forum.
The Korea Society cannot assume any responsibilities or provide any guarantees with respect to confidentiality of contestant team proprietary information. While the judges will be expected to use discretion with respect to proprietary information, they cannot guarantee non-disclosure. All participants must acknowledge the public nature of the competition and assume all risks associated with any disclosure during the competition.
This program is supported by Hanwha Life
Startup Scene: Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow
2025 Student Ideation Competition
The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue
24th Floor New York, NY 10017
