▲ President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with young entrepreneurs and startup founders at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Jan. 30, 2026. (Yonhap)

Lee-startups

Lee pledges to expand support for starting new biz amid AI transition

By Kim Eun-jung

SEOUL, Jan. 30 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung said Friday the government will expand support for starting new businesses to encourage people with innovative ideas to launch startups and adapt to shifts in the job market driven by artificial intelligence (AI).

Lee addressed growing concerns in the job market over the deployment of AI-powered robots on production lines, citing the humanoid robot Atlas developed by Boston Dynamics, a U.S. affiliate of Hyundai Motor Group.

Atlas has drawn attention after Hyundai Motor's labor union said it would oppose any plan to mass-produce the robot and deploy it at the company's factories, following its unveiling earlier this month at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

"How frightening and unsettling would it be to hear that the job you have safely relied on your entire life could be replaced by AI robots that neither eat nor sleep and operate 24 hours a day," Lee said during a startup strategy meeting at Cheong Wa Dae.

"I can understand the frustration (of workers)," he said. "But we have to adapt to this new trend, and one solution lies in starting new businesses."

Lee vowed to expand support for startups and launch new startup incubation programs to create jobs and spur innovation, expressing hope that the initiatives would help shift the nation from an employment-centered approach to one focused on entrepreneurship.

He also said the growing global popularity of Korean culture is creating new business opportunities in areas such as food, cosmetics, plastic surgery, television dramas and K-pop, attracting growing interest from aspiring entrepreneurs.

During the meeting, the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced a new startup incubation initiative, dubbed the "Startup for All Project."

Under the audition-style project, the government will identify and support 5,000 aspiring entrepreneurs nationwide. Of those selected, 1,000 teams will advance to a multistage startup audition process, with about 100 finalists competing in a nationwide startup competition to determine the final winners.

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