DAEJEON, South Korea — In a historic display of civic engagement and creative fervor, the Korean public has submitted a record-breaking number of innovative solutions to address national challenges. The Intellectual Property Agency (IPA) announced on Thursday that its flagship project, the "Everyone’s Idea" contest, has concluded its initial application phase with an unprecedented 27,185 submissions.
This initiative, marking the first major project since the launch of the IPA, has become a cornerstone of South Korea’s "Open Innovation" strategy. Beyond the raw numbers, the sheer scale of public interest was evidenced by over 5.45 million visits to the official website during the application period from January 8 to April 15.
A Surge of Interest in Policy and AI
The competition was divided into three categories, reflecting a diverse range of public interests. The Open Policy category received the highest volume of entries at 10,765 (39.6%), with citizens showing a particularly strong interest in improving the Land, Infrastructure, and Transport sectors.
The Assigned Task category followed with 9,264 entries (34.1%). Notably, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s challenge—"Creating Smarter Public Services with AI"—emerged as a crowd favorite, garnering 1,617 individual proposals. Meanwhile, the Open Technology category saw 7,156 entries (26.3%), dominated by innovations in the Manufacturing sector.
Rigorous Evaluation and Protection
The IPA is not taking the evaluation process lightly. A massive panel of 1,400 experts will begin a 10-day review process to select the top 100 ideas by the end of next month. To protect the intellectual property of the participants, the agency has implemented strict security protocols.
"To prevent any potential leaks or plagiarism, all reviewers are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). They will evaluate submissions within a restricted digital environment from designated physical locations," said Chung Yeon-woo, Vice Commissioner of the IPA, during a briefing at the Daejeon Government Complex.
From Concept to Reality: The Road Ahead
The selected 100 ideas will undergo an intensive "Incubation and Refinement" phase through September. Unlike traditional contests where the process ends at the awards ceremony, the "Everyone’s Idea" project focuses on real-world implementation:
Policy Ideas: Public officials from relevant ministries will serve as mentors to ensure the ideas are feasible and can be integrated into national legislation or regulations.
Technical Ideas: Winners will receive selective support for patent applications, prototype production, and business modeling to facilitate startups or technology transfers.
In October, the agency will host the "King of Kings" (Grand Finale) match to reveal the final winners to the public. Following the event, a pan-ministerial cooperation system will be activated to ensure that these citizen-led innovations are fully realized in the marketplace and the government’s administrative framework.
A New Era of Participatory Governance
The "Everyone’s Idea" project represents a shift in how the South Korean government approaches Research and Development (R&D) and social problem-solving. By lowering the barrier to entry, the IPA has tapped into a reservoir of "collective intelligence" that was previously underutilized.
Vice Commissioner Chung concluded the briefing with a message of commitment: "The explosive success of this contest confirms our citizens' deep-seated desire to transform the nation through innovation. We will ensure that these precious ideas do not remain on paper but are transformed into thriving startups and transformative public policies."
As the nation looks toward the final results in October, the massive participation rate serves as a powerful reminder that in the age of digital transformation, the best solutions often come from the people who experience daily challenges firsthand.
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