Lee pledges to expand support for startups to revive 'venture boom'

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with young entrepreneurs at Startup Square in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. Yonhap

President Lee Jae Myung said Wednesday that the government will expand support for innovative startups by stimulating the venture investment market and creating funds for entrepreneurs.

Lee made the pledge in a meeting with executives of local startups at Startup Square in Seongnam, south of Seoul.

"(The government) will work to ensure startups lead the era of the 'third venture boom' that drives future economic growth. The government will support the passion of young entrepreneurs," he said.

To that end, he vowed to deliver on the government's pledge to build a 40 trillion-won ($29 billion) annual venture investment market.

The government aims to foster 50 unicorn companies — startups valued at over 1 trillion won — by expanding investment, building startup hubs and increasing public funding for entrepreneurship.

Lee also said the government will support entrepreneurs in starting new businesses without fear of failure and in recovering when they do.

"Failure should not block new challenges," he said. "We will create a 1 trillion-won 'rechallenge fund' to help young startups recover and grow so that such experiences can become assets for greater leaps forward."

Before the meeting, Lee toured an exhibition booth featuring participating companies and tried out a humanoid robot.