The Incheon Metropolitan City Free Economic Zone Authority announced that it held a groundbreaking ceremony on September 30 for the K-Bio Lab Hub—a comprehensive support infrastructure for bio-startups—at the construction site (162-1 Songdo-dong) within Yonsei University’s International Campus.

Approximately 200 people attended the groundbreaking ceremony, including the Mayor of Incheon, the Minister of SMEs and Startups, the Commissioner of the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, the President of Yonsei University, members of the National Assembly, city council members, and representatives from bio-related organizations. Together, they reaffirmed their commitment to the successful establishment of the K-Bio Lab Hub and the advancement of South Korea’s bio industry.

Modeled after LabCentral—a bio-startup support organization in Boston, U.S.—the K-Bio Lab Hub is a national-level hub for bio-startup support being established to provide intensive support throughout the entire growth cycle of bio-startups.

Songdo, Incheon, was selected as the project site through a 2021 public solicitation by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. In February 2023, a memorandum of understanding was signed in which the Ministry of SMEs and Startups would oversee the project, Incheon Metropolitan City would construct the research facilities, and Yonsei University would provide the land free of charge. Subsequently, architectural design began in July 2024, and relevant administrative procedures—including building permits and various reviews—were completed. In July 2026, a construction contractor was selected, and construction commenced.

The K-Bio Lab Hub will be developed with a total project budget of 224 billion won (national government: 102.1 billion; Incheon Metropolitan City: 93 billion; Yonsei University: 20.8 billion; private sector: 8.1 billion), covering a site area of 13,169 square meters and a total floor area of 20,375 square meters. It will be constructed as an education and research facility comprising one basement level and nine above-ground floors. The target completion date is January 2029.

Once the facility is completed, approximately 60 small and medium-sized biotech startups are expected to move in. They will be able to share high-cost research equipment and receive support tailored to each stage of their growth—from drug candidate discovery through preclinical and clinical trials, regulatory approval, and investment attraction.

In particular, significant synergies are anticipated with the existing bio-industry infrastructure already concentrated in Songdo, Incheon. Incheon is home to major companies such as Celltrion, Samsung Biologics, Samsung Bioepis, SK Bioscience, and Lotte Biologics, as well as resources from industry, academia, research institutes, and hospitals—including Yonsei Severance Hospital—which is expected to further strengthen the ecosystem of organic collaboration among startups, universities, hospitals, companies, and investment institutions.

Incheon City plans to expand its industrial ecosystem—which integrates research, entrepreneurship, investment, and talent development—in addition to its world-class bio-production base, aiming to leap forward from a production-centered hub to a global bio-hub where innovative startups thrive.

The Mayor of Incheon Metropolitan City stated, “With the groundbreaking of the Lab Hub, we will add entrepreneurship and new drug development to Incheon’s bio-production infrastructure to increase quality jobs,” adding, “We will also actively push forward with the establishment of the Incheon Bio-Science and Technology Institute to cultivate high-level research talent and core technologies.”

The Minister of SMEs and Startups remarked, “The K-Bio Lab Hub will serve as a key incubator for South Korean bio startups to transform into global unicorn companies,” and added, “Starting with this groundbreaking, we will pool the capabilities of partner organizations to create a world-class bio startup hub.”

The President of Yonsei University remarked, “The groundbreaking of the K-Bio Lab Hub marks a meaningful beginning that opens a new chapter for bio research and entrepreneurship in South Korea,” adding, “Yonsei University will ensure that outstanding research achievements lead to innovation in startups and industry.”