LabInCube, Sookmyung-Affiliated Startup, Selected for Ministry's 'Scale-up TIPS' Program
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- Writer 커뮤니케이션팀
- 보도일자 2026-08-03
LabInCube, a subsidiary of Sookmyung Women's University's Industry-Academic Cooperation Holding Company, has been selected for the Ministry of SMEs and Startups' "Scale-up TIPS" program, a technology development support initiative for promising small and medium-sized enterprises.
Under the program, LabInCube will receive 2 billion won (approximately $1.5 million) in government funding over three years, from July 2026 to June 2029, to advance its core molecular-spacing control materials technology and accelerate product commercialization.
Scale-up TIPS links private investment with government research and development support to help high-potential ventures grow their technology and bring it to market. The selected project, titled "Diversification and Advancement of Industry-Customized Businesses Based on a Molecular-Spacing Control Platform Materials Library," will be carried out with BNH Investment serving as the operating institution and LabInCube as the lead research organization.
Founded by Professor Kyungmin Choi of the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, LabInCube specializes in developing porous advanced materials based on metal-organic framework (MOF) technology — a field that drew global attention after being recognized with the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The company was named a "Baby Unicorn" by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups in 2025 and raised 14.7 billion won in a Series B funding round this past March, positioning it for continued growth ahead of this latest selection.
Through the newly awarded project, LabInCube will develop materials and products tailored to industry-specific requirements based on its proprietary CUBRIX technology, which controls the internal space and surface functions of materials according to the size and properties of target molecules. This allows the selective capture of target substances, as well as the stable protection and controlled release of active ingredients under specific conditions.
Building on CUBRIX, LabInCube has developed derivative materials — MOFAC and INCUBE — for use in environmental, industrial, and medical device applications.
"This selection recognizes the scalability of the molecular-spacing control materials technology we have built and its commercialization potential across industries," said Choi, CEO of LabInCube and professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering. "We will systematically advance from materials development to manufacturing process optimization, prototyping, and client validation to deliver tangible results in product commercialization."
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