President Lee Jae-myung proposed on July 25 that South Korea and the United States expand their cooperation beyond security to include technology, innovation, and startups during a meeting with leading venture capitalists in San Francisco. The National Pension Service signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with six major Silicon Valley VCs to establish a framework for supporting domestic startups in attracting overseas investment.
At the 'Silicon Valley Venture Investment Meetup' held at a hotel in San Francisco, President Lee stated, "Korea and the U.S. should broaden our cooperation from a long-standing security alliance to a technology alliance, an innovation alliance, and a startup alliance."
The MOU includes participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, General Catalyst, New Enterprise Associates, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Khosla Ventures. The total assets under management of these firms amount to approximately $313 billion.
These VCs have been instrumental in discovering and nurturing global innovators such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Apple, Google, Airbnb, Uber, Coinbase, and Databricks. The National Pension Service and the six VCs aim to build a long-term partnership to enhance opportunities for domestic startups to attract foreign investment and enter the U.S. market.
During a subsequent roundtable, participants shared insights on global venture investment trends and investment cases involving Korean companies, discussing the investment environment in Korea, areas for improvement, and collaboration strategies for the U.S.-Korea venture ecosystem.
President Lee emphasized Korea's technological prowess, manufacturing competitiveness, digital infrastructure, and cultural strengths. He remarked, "When the promising startups of Korea meet your global investment capabilities, investors will gain new growth opportunities, and our startups will have a platform to leap into the global market. This is the most successful innovation model where investors and companies grow together."
He further noted, "The U.S. possesses world-class venture investment capabilities and a global network, while Korea has outstanding technology, manufacturing competitiveness, and a dynamic startup ecosystem. If we combine our strengths, we can create the next generation of leading innovative companies like Samsung, Hyundai, SK, and Naver that will lead the world."
The government plans to improve visa regulations that hinder the entry of overseas entrepreneurial talent and expand collaborative foundations connecting domestic and international companies, research institutions, and investment organizations. The government will also integrate the Fund of Funds, the National Growth Fund, pension funds, and private capital to comprehensively support promising startups in their growth into global enterprises.
President Lee stated, "Venture capitalists are not just providers of funds; they are partners in innovation who discover technological potential and connect strategies and networks to help startups leap into the global market." He urged, "Let the world's talent, technology, and capital gather in Korea to create growth opportunities for the next 30 years, and be a strong partner for 'Irreplaceable Korea.'"
* This article has been translated by AI.
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