Hanyang University has announced its selection as the operating institution for the '2026 Public Technology-Based Market-Linked Startup Exploration Support Project' (TeX-Corps), overseen by the Ministry of Science and ICT. This project, with a total budget of 75 billion won over five years, aims to connect excellent research outcomes within the university to viable business models through the establishment of an 'Innovation Lab for Startups'. This structured program will systematically verify whether laboratory-stage technologies can succeed in the market and promote researcher-centered technology entrepreneurship.

The project will employ the I-Corps methodology from the National Science Foundation (NSF) in the United States, allowing selected teams to refine their business models through interviews with potential customers and market validation (known as pivoting). Hanyang University plans to provide a comprehensive incubation program that supports these teams from inception to successful startups. This initiative will expand the target audience for entrepreneurship education at Hanyang University beyond undergraduate students, focusing on graduate students and researchers, thereby strengthening universal entrepreneurship education for master's and doctoral candidates.

To further enhance its startup ecosystem, Hanyang University aims to discover more than 22 lab startup exploration teams annually, offering comprehensive support for market validation, prototype production, specialized mentoring, and connections to follow-up investments. President Lee Ki-jung emphasized the university's commitment to combining its exceptional research capabilities and startup infrastructure to establish a robust structure that enables laboratory technologies to be validated in the market and transition into successful businesses, thereby serving as a crucial driving force in the national deep-tech startup ecosystem.