From Fashion to Flood Evacuation... All Four Dongseo University Student Startup Teams Win Awards

Grand Prize and Excellence Awards at FLY ASIA-Linked Startup Competitions

AI and International Student Ideas Also Stand Out

From a service that brings out the character of fashion brands to an AI system that helps people evacuate during floods, all four student startup teams from Dongseo University won awards at competitions held in conjunction with the Asia Startup Expo in Busan. Ideas spanning fashion, disaster safety and support for international students in their daily lives achieved results on the startup stage.

Dongseo University, led by President Jang Je-guk, announced on October 19 that all four student startup teams had won awards after advancing to the finals of three startup competitions held in conjunction with "FLY ASIA 2026" at BEXCO's Exhibition Center 1.

In the fashion category, an idea to help emerging brands create content received high marks. OUTPICKER, the startup team led by student Jo Younghan, won the Grand Prize at the 2026 Fashion Solvathon for "KUMO," a visual branding service that supports brand image development and visual content creation.

Dongseo University students and a professor who won the top and excellence awards at three startup competitions held in conjunction with FLY ASIA 2026 pose for a photo.

Student Yeon Juhyeon won an Excellence Award for proposing "muede Custom Studio," which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help create fashion products tailored to individual preferences.

The teams also achieved results in disaster safety. Biz, the startup team led by student Hwang Sunwoo, received the Chairman's Award from the Korea Student Aid Foundation at the 12th Busan Startup Idea Competition for its "Smart AI Flood Evacuation Guidance System," which helps people evacuate quickly during torrential rain and urban flooding. The team was selected as one of 15 finalists from among 346 applicant teams nationwide and went on to win an award.

Another team turned the everyday challenges faced by international students into a startup idea. Equal, presented by student Pa Kwan and led by team leader Jang Wooyoung, introduced "CraveMap," a local food information service that helps international students find food from home while abroad, based on tips submitted by students. The team advanced to the final round, which featured eight teams, of the 2026 Busan International Student Startup Idea Competition and received an Encouragement Award.

The awards are significant because they demonstrate the success of Dongseo University's Anchor Project Group startup program, which supports students in developing their ideas into business models rather than limiting them to competition entries.

The project group provides step-by-step support, from developing ideas and running startup clubs to refining business concepts, expert mentoring, and participation in external competitions and investor relations (IR) presentations.

Jo Younghan, a third-year student in the Department of Tourism Management and Convention, who received the Grand Prize, said, "We developed KUMO as a business to address the content creation challenges faced by emerging fashion brands."

He added, "We will develop it into a service used in the actual market and bring the character and stories of more brands to light."

Hwang Gihyeon, head of Dongseo University's Anchor Project Group, emphasized, "The fact that all four teams that reached the finals won awards demonstrates the success of our practical, startup-focused support. We will expand support linking commercialization, investment and networking so they can grow further on the national stage."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.