María Benjumea, Founder & President of South Summit
South Summit has been growing every year since its inception in Spain in 2012, establishing itself as a global platform that connects innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems. Under the leadership of its founder and president, María Benjumea, South Summit has successfully expanded from Spain to Latin America and Asia, becoming a major event that brings together startups, companies, and investors from around the world.
Key Officials from Spain and Gyeonggi Province
In this interview, María Benjumea and Danny Han, CEO of DIOKOS, shared an in-depth conversation about the early challenges and global expansion of South Summit. The discussion covers how South Summit has grown beyond Spain to the global stage, particularly focusing on its vision and strategy for Asia, including Korea. This exchange provides valuable insight into the reasons behind South Summit’s global success and its future plans.
María Benjumea, Founder & President of South Summit
Danny Han (DIOKOS): South Summit started in 2012. Was it originally intended just for Spain, or was it planned as a global event from the beginning?
María Benjumea (South Summit): From the very beginning, we didn’t see this event as just for Spain. We started with the potential for global growth in mind. That’s why we communicated everything in English from the start, and we developed strategies considering a global ecosystem. In fact, in 2012 and 2013, there wasn’t much international participation. However, we kept pushing for globalization, and that’s when we changed the name from “Spain Startup” to “South Summit.” This change allowed us to make a bigger leap onto the international stage.
What was the turning point that led South Summit to expand globally beyond Spain?
Around 2016, we decided it was time to go abroad. Our first international expansion started in Latin America, where we successfully hosted major events in Colombia and Mexico. In particular, the event in Brazil, with the support of the government of Rio Grande do Sul, was a huge success. Since then, Brazil has become one of our key markets, and it will continue to play an important role. This is how we have been expanding South Summit on the global stage.
Danny Han, CEO of DIOKOS
Why was Korea chosen as the first country in Asia to host South Summit?
Korea is a highly advanced technological nation, and we saw it as a perfect partner for an innovative ecosystem. At the same time, Gyeonggi Province showed great interest in South Summit and offered active support. Although we considered other Asian countries, Korea demonstrated a deep understanding and passion for technological innovation, making it our top choice in Asia. We didn’t expect the process to move this quickly, but in the end, hosting South Summit in Korea turned out to be a great decision.
María Benjumea, Founder & President of South Summit
Was it challenging to prepare for the event in such a short time?
Honestly, this event was confirmed in May and held in September, so the preparation time was really short. But like entrepreneurs, we embraced the challenge and seized the opportunity. Expanding into Asia has been a long-term goal for us, and Korea was the perfect partner to make our presence known. Thanks to the support from the Gyeonggi Province, we were able to complete all the preparations in a short time and successfully hold the event.
María Benjumea, Founder & President of South Summit
Do you plan to continue hosting South Summit in Korea?
We’re not fans of one-off events. Now that we’ve launched South Summit in Korea, we aim to make it grow bigger each year. Korea was our first step in Asia, and we look forward to more innovative collaborations and growth here. We plan to expand the event every year, strengthening South Summit as a global platform.
María Benjumea, Founder & President of South Summit (left), Danny Han, CEO of DIOKOS (right)
How is the partnership between IE University and South Summit?
We’ve been working with IE University for a long time. IE University is an innovative educational institution that focuses on entrepreneurship and innovation, so collaborating with South Summit was a natural fit. A key project we started back in 2012 with Juanjo Güemes played a major role in this. Since then, IE University has been an important partner of South Summit. Through this partnership, we’ve been able to introduce South Summit to many students and graduates, and we look forward to doing more innovative work with IE University in the future.
Event photos
Assemblyman Lee Jae Young, Chairman of the Future Science Cooperation Committee, Gyeonggi Assembly
Kim Hyun-gon, Vice Governor for Economy of Gyeonggi (left), María Benjumea, President of South Summit (right)
Dennis Hong, Roboticist & Professor at UCLA
Carlos Kik, CTO of AIMA Beyond AI (left), Assemblywoman Kim Mi-sook, Member of the Future Science Cooperation Committee, Gyeonggi Assembly (right)
Guillermo Kirkpatrick de la Vega, Spanish ambassador to the Republic of Korea (center), Assemblywoman Sim Hong Soon, Vice Chairwoman of the Future Science Cooperation Committee (right)
