Korea Intellectual Property Office names student creativity champions

The Korea Intellectual Property Office said that three teams had won top prizes at the 2026 Korea Student Creativity Championship after students worked through on-site problems.

The elementary-school Hokssi team from Busan, middle-school Heo Heo Heo Heo Heo Gyun team from Daegu and high-school Warak Nollamjjeoing team from Jeju each received the Minister of Science and ICT Award, the grand prize in their divisions. Hokssi included students from Dongseong, Gangdong and Oryukdo elementary schools; the Daegu team was from Daegun Middle School and the Jeju team from Seogwipo Industrial Science High School. All 48 finalist teams received awards ranging from gold prizes to encouragement prizes.

The final ran from July 30 through Aug. 1 at EXCO in Buk-gu, Daegu, as part of the 2026 Youth Invention Festival, held in Daegu for the first time. The annual festival is Korea's largest youth invention event and promotes invention culture.

The championship brings elementary, middle and high school students and teachers together in teams to solve challenges. A total of 520 teams applied after the competition was announced in March, with written reviews and regional preliminaries reducing the field to 48 finalists. The final program included performance challenges in which teams expressed their problem-solving process on stage, construction challenges requiring structures based on scientific principles, and impromptu challenges using materials and tools. The performance task, titled "Odd Audition," was announced in advance to all teams, which gave it different interpretations and stage presentations.

"I hope the teamwork and creativity students showed in this competition will become a driving force in leading Korea forward," Kim Yong-seon, commissioner of the Korea Intellectual Property Office, said. "We will spare no effort to help future talent fully display their creativity and spirit of challenge."