Coworking space giant WeWork said Tuesday that it plans to upgrade its online startup acceleration programs in a bid to support local firms that aim to expand overseas.

WeWork Korea held online forums, workshops and conferences this year to connect venture capitalists and industry experts with fledgling startups via its WeWork Labs platform, which offers budding firms access to seasoned experts, investors and other peers through mentoring programs and networking events. WeWork began the Labs platform in June 2018 in Korea.

This year alone, more than 500 online events, 60 webinars and five mental health awareness events were organized on the platform.

“We’re incredibly excited to testify the synergies of both new online virtual programming and the strategic offline integration moving forward,” said Adrian Tan, head of WeWork Labs in the Asia-Pacific region.

“As startups continue to navigate through unchartered territories, being able to access valuable resources like mentors and training from a global community like ours can make all the difference.”

From the second half this year, the coworking space firm will try to enable its members to have much easier access to resources and support programs in the global market.

Customers of WeWork Korea, for example, will be able to make one-on-one meeting appointments with 30 WeWork Labs managers in the Asia-Pacific region, which covers Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Australia, to receive business consulting. Weekly webinars and online chats with various discussion topics, such as a pivoting strategy in a post Covid-19 world and business expansion in Southeast Asia and Australia, will also be organized down the road.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)