[Sungkyunkwan University Campus Town Startups 2025] Witi, which operates ‘KNOWHOW,’ an information platform designed to support startup founders

Ji Hoon Sim, CEO of Witi

Delivers only actionable information selected from a founder’s point of view
Now expanded into a comprehensive startup platform with built-in community features

Witi is a startup that operates ‘KNOWHOW,’ an information platform designed to support startup founders. It was founded in September 2020 by Ji Hoon Sim (29).

KNOWHOW is a platform that helps startup founders efficiently discover and act on government support programs, investment information, and practical know-how—all in one place. It goes beyond simply listing information, focusing instead on enabling founders to actually take action in their startup journey.

“KNOWHOW is now entering its third year as a service. In the early days of my startup journey, I didn’t even know programs like the ‘Pre-Startup Package’ existed. I remember struggling to get started by pooling part-time job earnings with friends. That experience became the starting point for this service—I wanted to make sure that no aspiring founder would ever have to go through the same struggles I did.”

KNOWHOW provides only actionable information, selected strictly from the perspective of startup founders. It started as ‘a Q&A service similar to Knowledge iN,’ and later expanded to connect users with government support programs and recommend verified accelerators (ACs) and venture capital firms (VCs). It has since evolved into an integrated startup platform that also includes community features.

CEO Sim described it as “an information platform and community that helps founders tackle real-world challenges such as securing funding, making business decisions, and attracting investment.”

“KNOWHOW’s greatest strength lies in the ‘real data’ we’ve consistently accumulated over the past three years. Every morning, we thoroughly scan all government support program websites, AC and VC websites, as well as founder communities like Eona and Remember, in search of information and content that resonates with startup CEOs and offers real insights. We’ve built a sophisticated classification system by tagging this data with keywords and organizing it by topic, enabling AI to learn what information startup founders actually need.”

KNOWHOW is currently developing ‘an AI system for personalized information recommendations tailored to startup founders.’ “Just as YouTube understands your preferences without asking for your age or gender, KNOWHOW analyzes factors like a user’s fundraising history, location, and industry through non-identifiable inference to automatically deliver personalized information. Beyond technology, our greatest strength lies in people. Over the past three years, we’ve established a strong trust-based network with veteran entrepreneurs, industry professionals, and government program officers, which is an invaluable asset that other platforms cannot easily follow. The open chat rooms, which operate independently without direct oversight, reflect a self-sustaining ecosystem where users voluntarily respond to questions as they arise.”

Witi raised 200 million won in seed investment in 2023 and was selected for the TIPS program in the same year, securing dedicated funding for R&D.

After founding the company, CEO Sim said, “The most rewarding moments come when I see real entrepreneurs achieving tangible results through ‘KNOWHOW.’”

“For example, I felt incredibly proud when more than 3,000 people participated in our offline event ‘SUFF,’ when our total number of users surpassed 100,000, and when our monthly active users (MAU) exceeded 10,000 to 20,000. What stands out even more are the stories of founders who, through ‘KNOWHOW,’ were able to make the most of critical funds, such as severance pay or personal loans, during challenging times. I always find it deeply rewarding to see founders get a second chance through government programs or support packages, and to know that KNOWHOW played a role in helping them make real financial decisions and take action.”

Regarding future plans, CEO Sim said, “I believe the second half of 2025 will be a turning point for KNOWHOW,” adding, “Until now, the platform has functioned more like a curated content shop that selects and recommends information—but going forward, we plan to restructure it into a system where various information providers and founders can directly participate and contribute.”

Founded: September 2020
Main Business: Operating ‘KNOWHOW,’ an information platform for startup founders
Achievements: Selected for the SKKU Campus Town program; over 140,000 users and up to 30,000 monthly active users; KRW 1.2 billion in revenue in 2024 with cumulative revenue exceeding KRW 2 billion; facilitated 16+ investment matches through its in-house program KNOWHOW Exclusive; hosted the offline event SUFF with over 3,000 participants; selected for the TIPS program; secured seed funding and more

reporter jinho lee
jinho2323@hankyung.com