Contracts with GRI Researchers' Startups: 54% Sole-Source; Concerns PBS Abolition Could Weaken Corporate Collaboration [2026 National Assembly Audit]

182 of 336 Contracts with Researcher-Founded Startups Were Sole-Source Deals... Concerns Raised Over Conflicts of Interest
61.2% of GRI Researchers Expect "Collaboration with Companies to Decline"... Calls for Measures to Support SMEs

More than half of the contracts that government-funded research institutes (GRIs) signed with startup companies founded by their researchers were sole-source contracts. Amid concerns about potential conflicts of interest in efforts to commercialize research成果, there were also concerns that joint research with small and medium-sized enterprises could decline after the Research Project-Based System (PBS) is abolished. Calls were made to ensure both transparency in contracts and continuity of research support in collaborations between GRIs and companies.

At the National Assembly Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee's annual audit, held at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in Daejeon on October 20, lawmaker Park Jeong-ha of the People Power Party said that since 2022, GRIs had signed a total of 336 contracts worth approximately 12 billion won with companies started by their researchers. Of these, 182 were sole-source contracts, accounting for approximately 54% of the total, with a contract value of approximately 5.4 billion won.

People Power Party lawmaker Park Jeong-ha. Photo provided by Yonhap News Agency.

Park pointed out that the arrangement, in which a researcher secures through a startup a research project commissioned by the institution where the researcher works, could give rise to a conflict of interest. Citing a company founded by a researcher at the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology as an example, he stressed the need to review research institutes' contract management and conflict-of-interest prevention systems.

Park Seon-gyu, president of the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, explained that "the value of contracts with the company is approximately 45 million won" and that "some contracts were awarded under rules permitting small-value sole-source contracts." While acknowledging the need to encourage researchers to start businesses, Park stressed the importance of transparency in the contracting process and technical validation through fair competition.

Concerns That Joint Research with SMEs Could Decline After PBS Is Abolished

The possibility that the abolition of PBS could reduce collaboration with companies also emerged as an issue. Lawmaker Han Junho of the Democratic Party of Korea cited findings from a survey conducted by the Korea Industrial Technology Association in June 2026, saying that 61.2% of GRI researchers expected collaboration with companies to decline after PBS is abolished. By contrast, 77.2% of companies that had collaborated with GRIs said joint research had helped their research and development.

Han Junho, a lawmaker of the Democratic Party of Korea. Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency.

Han stressed that while abolishing PBS is necessary to create a stable research environment for GRI researchers, small-scale, short-term collaborative projects with SMEs should not be cut as a result.

Son Woong-hee, president of the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, acknowledged that "there is a perception that collaboration with companies could decline," adding that "the system needs to be operated in a way that takes into account the characteristics of research institutes closely connected to industrial sites."

Han also cited the case of the Southeastern Region Division of the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, where the number of joint research projects rose fivefold, from six in 2023 to 30 in 2025. He called for deepening research with existing partner companies while expanding opportunities for new regional companies to participate, and urged the institute to maintain and strengthen its on-site technical support system even after PBS is abolished.

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