[CONTRIBUTION] US partnerships vital to Korea's tech industry

Weston Moyer argues that Korea needs deeper relationships inside the U.S. innovation ecosystem to turn its semiconductor, manufacturing, defense and data center capabilities into greater global influence. On a recent trip to Korea, he found far broader interest in U.S. venture capital and emerging technologies than five years earlier. Partnerships are connecting Korean institutions with U.S. companies, technologies and markets. Moyer says Korea must act quickly and build companies for global markets.

Moyer met with roughly 20 Korean companies and investors on his latest trip, compared with seven groups five years earlier.

Anduril partnered with Hyundai Heavy Industries, while Saronic partnered with Samsung Heavy Industries.

MVP Ventures portfolio companies have received investments from Korean groups including Hanwha and Samsung Ventures.

Moyer’s team evaluated roughly a dozen Korean startups seeking to combine Korean technical talent with access to U.S. customers, capital and markets.

The article identifies deeper U.S. relationships, locally empowered representatives, stronger commercial connections and globally oriented founders as priorities for Korea.

Published Oct 11, 2026 11:59 am KST

A visitor looks around a tech exhibition at Coex in southern Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

Weston Moyer, co-founder and managing partner at MVP Ventures

As a venture capitalist based in Silicon Valley, I work with frontier technologies and the teams building them around the world. On a recent trip to Korea, I saw a surge in the number of companies and investors looking to engage with the U.S. technology ecosystem. The conversations were distinctly different from the ones I had five years ago. The question was no longer whether to engage, but how.

That shift is promising, but Korea needs to move faster.

The country has spent decades building world-class capabilities in semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, defense technology and data center infrastructure. It has the technical talent, industrial expertise and resources to become a leader in this technology cycle. What it does not yet have is influence within the U.S. innovation ecosystem that matches those capabilities.

That matters more now than ever. Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping nearly every major industry, and no one knows exactly where the technology will create the greatest value. The companies, investors and institutions closest to the people building it will have an advantage in understanding where the market is moving and acting on those shifts early. Korea has an opportunity to be one of them, but it cannot afford to watch this cycle develop from a distance.

Five years ago, on my first trip to Korea, I met with seven groups and came away believing only two were seriously focused on U.S. venture capital. On my most recent trip, I met with roughly 20 Korean companies and investors, and nearly every conversation reflected serious interest in U.S. venture and emerging technologies.

Investors wanted to know what we are seeing in Silicon Valley, how data center infrastructure is developing and where important technologies are emerging. Even GS Group, which already has a presence in Silicon Valley through GS Futures, spent significant time discussing data centers and what we are seeing from our position in U.S. venture.

Korea is not starting from behind. Samsung and SK hynix have made the country indispensable in semiconductors, and its companies are increasingly important across data center infrastructure, defense technology and advanced manufacturing. Yet in the U.S., Korea remains underestimated relative to what it has built. That gap creates an enormous opportunity for the institutions willing to close it.

Partnership is real advantage

Venture capital runs on relationships. Capital can open a door, but the best partnerships connect companies and investors to customers, expertise, technology and markets they might not otherwise reach.

We are already seeing that between Korea and the U.S. technology ecosystem. Anduril has partnered with Hyundai Heavy Industries, while Saronic has partnered with Samsung Heavy Industries. Multiple MVP Ventures portfolio companies have also received investments from Korean groups, including Hanwha and Samsung Ventures.

U.S. general partners, including MVP Partners, listen to a session on Korea’s startup ecosystem during Global GP-LP Day, hosted by Samyang Chemical Group at its headquarters in Seoul, Sept. 14. Courtesy of Samyang Chemical Group

These relationships give emerging U.S. companies access to industrial expertise, manufacturing capabilities, capital and Asian markets while giving Korean institutions direct connections to technologies.

At MVP Ventures, we take the same approach with our limited partners. We work with a concentrated group because we want those relationships to extend beyond capital. Five of our Korean LP partners have described MVP as their best venture partner. The goal is to help our partners understand where markets are moving, build relationships with the companies driving that change and find opportunities to work together. In a technology cycle moving as quickly as AI, that proximity can become a competitive advantage.

Korea can build for world

The opportunity also runs in the other direction. Korea should not settle for becoming a strategic partner to U.S. technology companies. It has the talent and technical capabilities to produce more globally important technology companies of its own.

Israel offers a useful model. Its strongest technology companies build for global markets rather than allowing the size of the domestic market to define their ambitions. On my recent trip, our team evaluated roughly a dozen Korean startups pursuing versions of that model, pairing technical talent in Korea with ambitions to reach customers, capital and markets in the U.S. and beyond.

Some Korean institutions are already moving. Samyang Chemical Group has helped broaden access to U.S. venture among a wider group of Korean families and corporations. GS Group was one of the first partners to introduce us to the Korean market. Smilegate has become one of our closest partners there, while Shift Up and Shinhan Ventures are building deeper relationships with the U.S. technology ecosystem.

Five years ago, that level of engagement was concentrated among relatively few institutions. Today, the ambition is much broader. Now it needs to translate into action.

Korea already has the talent, technology and industrial capabilities to lead in this cycle. What it needs now are deeper relationships inside the U.S. innovation ecosystem, people on the ground empowered to move quickly, stronger commercial connections and more founders building for global markets from day one.

The window is open now. The institutions that move decisively will not only gain access to where technology is going. They will help shape where it goes next.

Weston Moyer is co-founder and managing partner at MVP Ventures

韦斯顿·莫耶认为，韩国需要与美国创新生态系统建立更深入的联系，才能将其在半导体、制造业、国防和数据中心方面的优势转化为更大的全球影响力。在最近一次韩国之行中，他发现韩国对美国风险投资和新兴技术的兴趣远超五年前。各种合作关系正在将韩国机构与美国公司、技术和市场连接起来。莫耶表示，韩国必须迅速行动，打造面向全球市场的企业。

莫耶在最近一次访问中会见了大约 20 家韩国公司和投资者，而五年前他只接触了 7 组。

Anduril 与现代重工建立了合作关系，而 Saronic 与三星重工建立了合作关系。

MVP Ventures投资组合中的公司已获得包括韩华集团和三星风投在内的韩国集团的投资。

莫耶的团队评估了大约十几家韩国初创公司，这些公司希望将韩国的技术人才与美国客户、资本和市场结合起来。

文章指出，加深与美国的关系、赋予当地权力的代表、加强商业联系以及培养具有全球视野的创始人是韩国的优先事项。

发布于2026年10月11日上午11:59（韩国标准时间）

周二，一名参观者在首尔南部COEX会展中心参观科技展览。（韩联社）

韦斯顿·莫耶，MVP Ventures 的联合创始人兼管理合伙人

作为一名常驻硅谷的风险投资家，我与世界各地的前沿科技公司及其团队合作。最近一次韩国之行，我发现寻求与美国科技生态系统合作的公司和投资者数量激增。与五年前相比，如今的对话截然不同。问题不再是是否要合作，而是如何合作。

这种转变令人鼓舞，但韩国需要加快步伐。

几十年来，美国在半导体、先进制造、国防技术和数据中心基础设施领域打造了世界一流的能力。它拥有成为本轮技术变革领导者所需的技术人才、产业专长和资源。然而，它目前在美国创新生态系统中的影响力还不足以匹配其这些能力。

如今，这一点比以往任何时候都更加重要。人工智能（AI）正在重塑几乎所有主要行业，但没有人能确切知道这项技术将在哪些领域创造最大价值。那些与人工智能开发者关系最密切的公司、投资者和机构，将更有能力了解市场走向并及早采取行动。韩国有机会成为其中之一，但它不能袖手旁观，坐视这一周期发展。

五年前，我第一次去韩国时，会见了七个投资团队，当时我觉得只有两个团队真正关注美国风险投资。而最近一次去韩国，我接触了大约20家韩国公司和投资者，几乎每次谈话都体现出他们对美国风险投资和新兴技术的浓厚兴趣。

投资者们想了解我们在硅谷看到了什么，数据中心基础设施的发展情况，以及哪些重要技术正在涌现。就连已经通过GS Futures在硅谷开展业务的高盛集团，也花了大量时间讨论数据中心以及我们从美国风险投资领域观察到的情况。

韩国并非起步落后。三星和SK海力士已使韩国在半导体领域占据不可或缺的地位，其企业在数据中心基础设施、国防技术和先进制造业等领域的重要性也日益凸显。然而，在美国，韩国的成就与其所取得的成就相比，仍然被低估。这种认知差距为那些致力于弥合这一差距的机构创造了巨大的机遇。

合作是真正的优势

风险投资的运作依赖于人脉关系。资金可以打开一扇门，但最佳的合作关系能够将公司和投资者与客户、专业知识、技术和市场联系起来，而这些资源和市场原本可能是他们无法触及的。

我们已经看到韩国和美国科技生态系统之间存在这种合作。Anduril与现代重工建立了合作关系，而Saronic则与三星重工建立了合作关系。MVP Ventures投资组合中的多家公司也获得了来自韩国企业的投资，包括韩华集团和三星风投。

9月14日，在三养化学集团首尔总部举办的全球普通合伙人-有限合伙人日活动中，包括MVP Partners在内的美国普通合伙人正在聆听关于韩国创业生态系统的讲座。图片由三养化学集团提供。

这些关系使新兴的美国公司能够获得工业专业知识、制造能力、资本和亚洲市场，同时也使韩国机构能够直接接触到技术。

在MVP Ventures，我们对待有限合伙人也采取同样的做法。我们只与少数合伙人合作，因为我们希望这种关系超越资金本身。我们有五位韩国有限合伙人称MVP是他们最好的风险投资伙伴。我们的目标是帮助合伙人了解市场走向，与推动变革的公司建立联系，并寻找合作机会。在人工智能这样快速发展的技术周期中，这种密切联系可以成为竞争优势。

韩国可以为世界建设贡献力量

反过来，韩国也拥有这样的机会。它不应满足于仅仅成为美国科技公司的战略合作伙伴，它自身也具备人才和技术能力，完全可以打造更多具有全球影响力的科技公司。

以色列提供了一个值得借鉴的模式。该国最强大的科技公司着眼于全球市场，而不是让国内市场的规模限制其发展目标。在我最近的访问中，我们的团队评估了大约十几家韩国初创公司，它们都在采用类似的模式，将韩国的技术人才与拓展美国及其他地区客户、资本和市场的雄心壮志相结合。

一些韩国机构已经开始行动。三养化学集团帮助更多韩国家族和企业拓展了参与美国风险投资的渠道。GS集团是最早将我们引入韩国市场的合作伙伴之一。Smilegate已成为我们在韩国最紧密的合作伙伴之一，而Shift Up和新韩创投则正在与美国科技生态系统建立更深入的联系。

五年前，这种程度的参与主要集中在少数几个机构。如今，目标更加广泛。现在需要将其转化为实际行动。

韩国已经具备引领这一周期所需的人才、技术和产业能力。它现在需要的是与美国创新生态系统建立更深层次的联系，赋予当地人员快速行动的权力，加强商业联系，以及让更多创始人从一开始就着眼于全球市场。

机会之窗已然开启。那些果断行动的机构不仅能够洞悉技术发展的未来方向，更能够引领技术走向下一个发展阶段。

韦斯顿·莫耶是MVP Ventures的联合创始人兼管理合伙人。