KAIST Student Hwang Sun-woo Achieves Runner-up in Merck Innovation Cup 2025

[Financial News] Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) announced on the 1st that Hwang Sun-woo, a student in the integrated master's and doctoral program in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (supervised by Professor Myung Jae-wook), participated as the only representative from a domestic institution in the global innovation competition '2025 Merck Innovation Cup' organized by the German science and technology company Merck (Merck KGaA) and achieved runner-up.
The Merck Innovation Cup is a global innovation program in the field of science and technology that Merck (Merck KGaA) has held annually since 2011, accepting applications from graduate students and postdoctoral researchers worldwide.
In this competition, a total of 42 final participants were selected through two stages of screening, with a low acceptance rate of less than 1%. The final participants gain opportunities for business idea competition and forming collaborative research networks, with all expenses covered by Merck.
As a result of the competition, among a total of 7 teams, the Smart Manufacturing team won 1st place (Winner), the Green Chemistry team won 2nd place (Runner-up), and the Drug Discovery team won 3rd place (Runner-up 2). 
KAIST student Hwang Sun-woo was the only participant and awardee from a domestic institution, participating as part of the Green Chemistry team.
The Green Chemistry team, which included Hwang, consisted of doctoral students from Free University of Berlin (Germany), Sofia University (Bulgaria), Oxford University (UK), and Heidelberg University (Germany). Under the guidance of alumni coach Stacey Paiva (current senior editor of Nature Chemistry, participant in 2019), they designed an innovative tool by incorporating the '12 Principles of Green Chemistry', an international guideline for environmentally friendly chemical synthesis, into Merck's proprietary chemical design software 'Synthia®'.
The proposal was evaluated as a practical alternative that could minimize harmful by-products in the chemical industry, promote sustainable chemical processes, and enhance ESG strategies and technological competitiveness within Synthia®. It received high marks for innovation and alignment with Merck's business strategy, achieving the final runner-up position. The winning team was awarded a prize of 5,000 euros.
Merck (Merck KGaA) is a global science and technology company headquartered in Darmstadt, Germany, with subsidiaries in over 70 countries worldwide.

jiany@fnnews.com Reporter Yeon Ji-an