Jongyeop Sun, a senior undergraduate student in the Department of Electrical Engineering at POSTECH (Research Advisor: Prof. Youngjin Kim, Capstone Design Advisor: Prof. Yosep Jeon), has received the 2025 Korea Talent Award from the Minister of Education, recognizing his achievements in deep-tech entrepreneurship and innovation as a future national talent.

The Korea Talent Award is a flagship national award organized by the Ministry of Education and administered by the Korea Student Aid Foundation. Since its establishment in 2001, the award has recognized young individuals who create new social value through creativity and passion while contributing to the development of society and communities. This year, 100 awardees were selected nationwide, including 40 students in the high school and youth category and 60 recipients in the university and young adult category.

During his time at POSTECH, Sun co-founded the deep-tech startup Lutra in 2021 with two fellow students. The company develops technologies addressing image forgery and digital authenticity using blockchain and artificial intelligence, providing solutions to important challenges in the digital society.

In 2023, Sun became the youngest Korean recipient of the CES Innovation Award, gaining international recognition for the technological competitiveness of his startup. Since then, he has continued to achieve domestic and international deep-tech licensing results, drawing attention as a notable example of a student-led startup that combines technological innovation with social value.

In recognition of these accomplishments, Sun was invited to deliver the representative acceptance speech on behalf of the awardees at the ceremony. In his remarks, he stated,
“My personal wish to live a happy life eventually grew into a commitment to help create a happier society. Entrepreneurship became the way for me to put that commitment into action.”
He added that he hopes to continue solving real-world social problems through technology and develop products that have a tangible impact on people’s lives, building upon the research mindset and spirit of challenge he cultivated at POSTECH.

The 2025 Korea Talent Award Ceremony was held on December 24 at the Government Sejong Convention Center, where the Minister of Education personally presented the awards to the 100 recipients.

Beyond an individual achievement, this recognition also highlights the educational and research excellence of POSTECH’s Department of Electrical Engineering and its strong environment for student entrepreneurship. Sun’s accomplishment is expected to inspire other undergraduate students to pursue both academic excellence and real-world innovation.