Seoul startups won 27 Innovation Awards at CES 2026... AI and fintech are sweeping the global stage.

A Seoul-based startup won 27 innovation awards at the world's largest information technology and electronics trade show “CES 2026”, achieving remarkable results. What is noteworthy about this achievement is that the local government's entrepreneurial support policies have effectively transformed into global competitiveness.

On November 30, the city of Seoul announced that companies from Seoul participating in CES 2026 showcased outstanding capabilities and received technological recognition in various fields such as artificial intelligence, fintech, robotics, and extended reality (XR). These companies have grown and thrived relying on Seoul's entrepreneurial infrastructure and full-cycle support system, demonstrating that the connection between policy and market practices has yielded substantial results.

The CES Innovation Award is evaluated annually by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) based on technological achievements, design, and innovation, and is regarded by the industry as an important indicator of global technology trends. Notably, this award, presented before the opening of CES, often serves as a springboard for startups to enter the global market.

Typical cases among the award-winning companies include: “NationA,” which developed a generative AI 3D motion production platform, won the highest innovation award in the content and entertainment category; “StudioLab,” a developer of an imaging shooting system based on AI robotic technology, triumphed in the field of extended reality; and “CrossHub,” which possesses financial identity verification technology, won the highest innovation award in the fintech sector. In addition, Seoul companies have demonstrated balanced development strength in various fields such as robotic technology, digital health, enterprise-level technology, and smart communities, attracting industry attention.

These enterprises have received comprehensive support from technology research and development to commercialization and overseas expansion through support projects operated by the city of Seoul, such as “Seoul-type R&D Plan,” “Seoul Campus Town,” “Seoul Fintech Lab,” “Seoul AI Center,” “Seoul Startup Center,” and “Digital Media City Advanced Industry Center.” This integrated support system ultimately translates into concrete results in terms of enterprises going global and winning global technology awards, serving as a model case of effective systematic policy design.

The relevant officials of Seoul stated that in the future, they will continue to strengthen the overall competitiveness of the city's entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem, particularly focusing their strategy on high value-added industries such as artificial intelligence, financial technology, and robotics, with the aim of cultivating Seoul into a technology entrepreneurship hub in Asia. This trend is expected to become a typical example of local government-led industrial cultivation policies expanding to the global competitive stage.