Samsung is investing in early-stage startups with grants that amount to $100 million. Through its recently launched seed Samsung Catalyst Fund, the technology giant will be providing financial support to a wide range of projects, which are in their initial stages of development, from an array of tech fields related to components and subsystems. The South Korean corporation will be providing the selected start-ups with both money and the access of valuable intellectual resources of the company, such as R&D centers, marketing and branding assets.

Photo: Young Sohn, President and Chief Strategy Officer of Device Solutions, Samsung Electronics, Credit: James Martin, CNET (click to enlarge)

To get the fund project rolling, Samsung will be holding a competition, SamsungCreate Challenge, to select the most interesting start-up projects—the winners will receive 10 million in seed investments plus additional support from Samsung. The competition, which will be launched later this year, “will encourage artists, engineers, entrepreneurs, and other innovators to leverage Samsung’s Device Solutions Architecture Platform,” says the company.

The fund has been launched within Samsung Strategy and Innovation Center (SSIC), which was announced yesterday, February 3. The center has headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., with two international offices—in Korea and Israel. Its work will focus on enhancing technologies of the post-PC era, the focus fields will include cloud infrastructure, mobile privacy to Internet of Things human interface and mobile health.

“It is important to be in Silicon Valley. This is the epicenter of disruptive forces. And we want to make sure we are part of the disruptive forces,” commented Young Sohn, Samsung’s President and Chief Strategy Officer of device Solutions, who leads SSIC. He also adds that the new fund will not be working like an incubator, but will be providing support and seed investments to the projects by “bringing expertise to these companies”. The new fund will be operating together with the $1 billion Samsung Ventures America Fund, which is also focused on supporting start-ups.