Incheon Investment Attraction Platform “BigWave” Hosts Open Innovation Startup IR Event

2025 Big Wave Second Half Selected 5 Startups. (From left) Applause CEO JUNG-JIN BAE, AI4PET CEO EUN-A HEO, IntelliZ CEO HYUN-SIK NA, Augmented Intelligence CEO GEUN-SIK CHO, and DBDBLAB CEO JI-SOO KANG
 

Incheon Metropolitan City and the Incheon Center for Creative Economy & Innovation held the investment IR presentation for the startups selected for support through its investment attraction platform, Big Wave (BiiG WAVE), on October 23 at COEX, Seoul.

This Big Wave IR event was organized to help selected startups that have proven their technology and business potential in collaboration with Incheon Center’s corporate partners to secure follow-up investments. 
Corporate partners participating included KT, Korean Air, Kakao Mobility, and Hansol PNS, who sought innovative collaboration opportunities with startups.
 

The five selected companies in the high-tech sector are: Applause (spatial personalized content curation), AI4PET (AI pet health check), Augmented Intelligence (AI-based aviation manual digital innovation), DBDBLAB (innovative research solution), and IntelliZ (machine vision for production line defect inspection).
 

The event was attended by more than 100 participants, including venture capitalists (VCs), accelerators (ACs), major corporations exploring open innovation, and related organizations, fostering active networking between investors and startups.
 

Now in its fifth year, Big Wave continues to focus on helping selected startups achieve tangible investment results and grow to the next level despite challenges in the investment market. 
From the selection stage, it emphasizes collaboration with investors and strengthening global market connections to provide substantial support.
 

HAN-SEOP LEE, CEO of the Incheon Center, said, “In difficult times for both global and domestic investment markets, Big Wave’s role becomes even more crucial. We are fully committed to helping the selected companies write new success stories with all our available resources.”
 

Meanwhile, Big Wave is a platform jointly operated by Incheon Metropolitan City and the Incheon Center, based on the nation’s first local government-created ‘Incheon Big Wave Mother Fund,’ established to support startup investment attraction. 

Over the past four years, it has discovered 94 companies and achieved a cumulative investment attraction of approximately KRW 150 billion.