Korea Expressway youth AI startup pilot (한국도로공사 청년 AI 스타트업): who counts as 청년

A road operator funding AI startups is unusual. The Korea Expressway Corporation (한국도로공사) published the 2026 pilot notice on 6 August 2026, according to its K-Startup listing. This post reads that notice line by line.

What is the 한국도로공사 청년 AI 스타트업 pilot for?

The Corporation's notice file states one goal: turn young AI pre-founders into AI solution suppliers. It defines a supplier as an SME that sells its own AI products or services to other SMEs that want to adopt AI.

The target field is big data and AI. The notice gives examples: data collection, analysis, management and security, data platforms, AI software, AI services and AI hardware.

The Corporation's 2026 notice in our catalogue links back to the original on K-Startup. The terms below come from the notice file itself.

Who counts as 청년 in the 2026 notice?

The Korea Expressway Corporation's notice sets two tests, both measured on the announcement date of 6 August 2026. The applicant must be 만 19 to 39 years old. The applicant must also hold no 사업자등록 and no corporate incorporation registration in their own name.

The listing disagrees with itself on one number.

The K-Startup page shows an age band of 만 20 to 39 in its header field. The notice file, and the K-Startup page's own body text, say 만 19. Follow the notice text, which confirms 만 19, and check with the operator before you prepare anything.

How much did the pilot pay?

According to the notice file, the 2026 pilot selected two people. Each could receive up to 45 million won in business funds and up to 5 million won in startup-programme costs. The Corporation covers 100% of the project cost, and the notice sets no self-funded share.

Business funds covered AI solution development, data acquisition, intellectual property filing, business-model refinement and marketing. Listed cost items include materials, outsourcing, equipment and software, prototype labour, certification and testing fees, incorporation costs, travel and advertising.

How did selection work?

Applicants applied online only, through the Corporation's technology market site, 도공기술마켓. They registered as an individual member and uploaded a 참가신청서, a business plan and supporting evidence. The notice names patents, utility models and certificates as examples.

The selection process had two stages.

The document review scored four things: problem recognition, feasibility, growth strategy and team. The second stage, a 과제선정 심의 hearing, scored the startup item, the plan, the technology and the business case. The notice asks for a prototype demonstration where possible.

In practice, the notice's schedule ran as follows: notice on 6 August, applications 14 August to 30 September, document review in October, hearing in November and agreement in December.

What does the money oblige you to do?

The Corporation pays from the 상생협력기금, a win-win cooperation fund under Korea's act on large and small company cooperation. That fund explains the strings attached to the money.

• Hold a 사업자등록증 and a 중소기업확인서 after the agreement. The notice allows fund requests only then.
• Open a new bank account for the project money.
• Receive up to 70% after the start. For example, the notice's own illustration pays 35 million of 50 million won first and the rest after the final evaluation.
• Register in the AI voucher supplier pool run by the National IT Industry Promotion Agency (정보통신산업진흥원) before the agreement ends.
• Report sales to the Corporation every year for three years after the final result.
• Do not run another government or public startup commercialisation project during the agreement.

Can a foreign founder apply?

The Corporation's notice says nothing about nationality, residence status or a Korean ID number. It states the age rule, the no-registration rule, individual membership on 도공기술마켓, and the post-selection paperwork. It also bars applicants with unpaid national or local taxes or defaulted debts.

However, the notice does not say whether a foreign national can register on 도공기술마켓 or later obtain an SME confirmation. Ask the operator first. For the registration side, read how a foreigner registers a business in Korea and how a foreigner opens a K-Startup account.

Which 상생 line does the pilot belong to?

The 5 million won programme share runs through "host organisations" of the win-win startup line. The notice lists seven: 재단법인 밴드, 한국무역협회 (the Korea International Trade Association), 한국생산성본부, 한국전기산업진흥회, 한국표준협회 (the Korean Standards Association), QM&E 경영컨설팅 and 해양수산과학기술진흥원. The notice links the winners to these hosts' programmes.

Two of those hosts appear on other 2026 notices we read. 한국생산성본부 runs the Gangwon Land round, and 한국전기산업진흥회 sits behind the KEPCO KPS round. For public-sector lines in general, read GovTech and public-sector competitions.

Facts above come from the K-Startup page and the Corporation's attached notice file, read on 16 October 2026 and current as of 2026. The notice states no second round, so confirm any new call at the source.

See other public-body lines in the EastStartup programme catalogue.