Gyeongsang National University operates the 'Market-Fit Innovation' to diagnose market fit for (pre-)startup companies
- July 28–29… 20 participating companies from the Startup-Centered University Program and '모두의 창업' together
- Linked AI persona practice and one-on-one mentoring… additional online mentoring support through August
Gyeongsang National University (President Kwon Jinhoe) Startup-Centered University Program Group (Director Choi Byung-geun) announced that it operated a one-night, two-day program to diagnose the market fit of products for 20 (pre-)startup representatives. Participating companies derived product-specific improvement plans through customer validation.
The Startup-Centered University Program Group ran '2026 Market-Fit Innovation' at Dongbang Hotel in Jinju from July 28 (Tue) to 29 (Wed). As a specialized program to reduce trial and error in early market entry by (pre-)startups and secure product/service market fit (PMF, Product-Market Fit), 10 companies each participated from the 'Startup-Centered University Program' and the '모두의 창업' project.
The Program Group organized this program to bring together participating companies from the two initiatives to share product/market validation know-how and, through inter-project synergy, accelerate the growth of local startups. Eligible participants were companies with a minimum viable product (MVP) or an early product, and the program consisted of diagnosing their product’s market fit level and going through customer and problem validation.
Over the one-night, two-day period, the program combined pre-practice based on virtual customers (AI personas) with one-on-one, customized intensive mentoring by professional instructors. Participating companies identified the core requirements the market wants and revised and refined their commercialization strategies (BMC·Business Model Canvas), and produced immediately deployable customer interview frameworks and improvement plans.
The Startup-Centered University Program Group will also ensure that, after the program ends, participating teams cando so by providing access to the 'Startup Studio 스타트업 스튜디오' platform and offering additional team-specific online mentoring through August. It will also continue company-level performance tracking and follow-up linkage management based on the accumulated validation activity data.
Choi Byung-geun, Head of the Startup-Centered University Program Group, said, "Detecting and correcting in advance the failure pattern of continuing to develop products the market does not want is key to startup survival," adding, "I hope that through this Market-Fit Innovation program, local startups have established a solid footing for real-world customer interviews and successful market entry, and we will continue to expand systematic startup support programs going forward."
Meanwhile, Gyeongsang National University operates the '모두의 창업' project led by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and, in conjunction with the Startup-Centered University Program Group, is promoting stage-specific, tailored support for local startups.
·Photo caption:The Gyeongsang National University Startup-Centered University Program Group held the '2026 Market-Fit Innovation Program'.
Responsible department:Startup-Centered University Program Group |Contact:055-772-4682
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