AR Leader Xreal Says Korea Chases Profit, China Embraces Risk
Xreal's Asia-Pacific head says Korean firms chase short-term profit while China embraces risk in AR glasses, as Korea's regulatory reform stalls for six years.
AI PRISM
Startup Founder News
Startup ecosystem, venture capital, and entrepreneurship news. Covers funding rounds, new ventures, tech innovation, and the Korean startup landscape.
Cerebras Pushes for Nasdaq Listing as AI Inference Chip Sales Surge
AI inference chip startup Cerebras Systems files for Nasdaq listing under ticker 'CBRS' after posting $510 million in revenue and a swing to profit last year, with valuation tripling to $23 billion.
AI Rebranding Bubble Bursts as Pretenders and Real Players Diverge
NYSE splits AI pivots into winners and losers: Allbirds plunges 35% after rebranding while CoreWeave thrives. Shinsegae expands Reflection AI partnership; China chips surge 17.3%.
RideFlux Wins Korea's First Autonomous Freight Transport License
RideFlux became the first Korean company to secure a paid autonomous freight transport license, launching commercial service on a 112km Seoul-Jincheon route with plans for fully unmanned operations by 2027.
Coupang Invests 120 Billion Won in AI Startups, Expanding into Robotics and Sovereign AI
Coupang invested $84 million in AI startups over three years, while Samsung SDS raised 1.2 trillion won from KKR for AI and M&A expansion. Nvidia's quantum AI model 'Ising' accelerates Korean quantum startup development.
KDB NextRound Emerges as Venture Hub with 30% Investment Success Rate
KDB NextRound marks 10 years as Korea's largest startup IR platform with 9.2 trillion won cumulative investment and 30.7% success rate. National Growth Fund commits 10 trillion won to bio, display, and AI sectors.
Alcohol Sales Decline as Non-Alcoholic Market Expands
Korea's alcohol market faces major shift as Gen Z drinking drops to lowest levels, causing 30% bar closures in 5 years. PG companies thrive amid digital payment expansion while SK hynix announces massive bonuses.
Samsung Cuts Robot AI Computing by Two-Thirds, Doubles Speed
Samsung Research unveils Shallow·π technology cutting robot AI computing by two-thirds while doubling decision speed to 17.2Hz. Kia saves 3,750 annual labor hours with digital twin. Daiso hits record 230.7B won in March sales.
Anthropic Considers Custom Chips as AI Semiconductor Race Intensifies
Anthropic joins OpenAI in exploring custom AI chips to reduce Nvidia dependence, while Korean DPU startup Mango Boost pursues 150 billion won Series B at 700 billion won valuation.
Furiosa AI, Rebellion Target Europe's Sovereign AI Market
Korean NPU startups Furiosa AI and Rebellion are expanding into Europe's sovereign AI market, with Furiosa establishing a Portugal entity and Rebellion discussing chip supply with Mistral AI.
IMM Invests 9 Billion Won in Eco-Friendly Beauty Brand Tone28, Betting on Global Expansion
IMM Investment, Korea's largest VC, invested 9 billion won in eco-friendly cosmetics firm Tone28 for global expansion. Chasm launches industry-first insurance premium payment service, Korea University extends startup leave indefinitely.
Chinese AI Dominates Korea's Korean-Language Benchmark as Domestic Models Fall Behind
China's Alibaba Qwen 3.5 swept the top four spots on Korea's government-certified K-AI Leaderboard, while Anthropic tripled revenue to $30 billion and POSCO invested 7 billion won in robotics startup Brils.
LS Cable Pursues 1 Trillion Won STO Fundraising Amid AI Demand Squeeze
LS Cable & System plans to securitize 1.5 trillion won in inventory via tokenized securities to raise over 1 trillion won, while Worksphere's AI overhaul drives 298% click surge and SpaceX eyes record $1.75T IPO.
OpenClo-Based AI Agents Spread as Government Moves to Build Ecosystem
OpenClo-based AI agents gain traction as Naver Cloud reviews development and Korea's government launches the Agentic AI Alliance. Torder restructures amid KT competition; China's Neolix targets 50,000 unmanned vehicles.
Rebellions Gears Up for KOSPI IPO as AI Chip Listing Race Heats Up
AI chip startup Rebellions targets KOSPI preliminary review in August with a 3.4 trillion won valuation, as FuriosaAI and DeepX also prepare Korean listings amid a global AI IPO wave.
NPU Startups Face Revenue Test as Customer Acquisition Race Heats Up
Korean NPU startups including FuriosaAI, DeepX and Mobilint race to prove revenue as Samsung SDS prepares NPUaaS launch in July, while Agibot targets 10,000 humanoid shipments and Anthropic faces code leak ahead of IPO.
AI Startups Enter GPU 'Subscription' Era as GPUaaS Becomes Essential Infrastructure
AI startups are rapidly adopting GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) subscriptions as essential infrastructure, while Pearl Abyss's Crimson Desert hits 4 million sales and Nvidia invests $2 billion in Marvell Technology.
SK Networks Bets Big on Upstage's 'Solar' With Cumulative Investment of 122 Billion Won
SK Networks invests additional 50 billion won in AI startup Upstage, bringing cumulative investment to 122 billion won. Yanolja surpasses 1 trillion won revenue. Microsoft launches multi-AI agent combining GPT and Claude.
Startup Employment Falls for First Time in 12 Years as Revenue Surges 20%
Korean startups saw average employment fall 10.4% to 8.97 workers in 2024, the first decline in 12 years, while average revenue surged 20% to 1.775 billion won, signaling a structural shift toward capital-light business models.
War Fuels Defense Startup Boom as AI, Drone Investment Surges
Global defense tech VC investment surged 80% to $49.1 billion in 2024 as AI, drone and robotics startups gain prominence. Korea's startup ecosystem responds with new defense councils and accelerator programs.
Government Directly Invests 250 Billion Won in Rebellion for AI Chip Push
South Korea's National Growth Fund makes its first direct investment of 250 billion won in AI chip startup Rebellions, with total funding reaching 600 billion won including KDB and private investors.
AI Firm MakinaRocks Launches KOSDAQ IPO Process
MakinaRocks, an industrial AI startup backed by LG, SK, and Naver, files for a KOSDAQ IPO with up to 39.5 billion won in proceeds. Korea also launches a 5,000-entrepreneur program and Arm unveils its first in-house AI chip.
OpenAI Courts Private Equity With 17.5% Return Guarantee
OpenAI is in talks with Bain Capital and TPG to form a joint venture offering 17.5% guaranteed returns and priority AI model access, while Anthropic pursues a rival consulting venture with Blackstone.
Naver Declares AI Agent Rollout Across All Services
Naver announces full-scale AI agent rollout across search, finance and health services at AGM, while Samsung Bioepis shifts to integrated biosimilar model and KAIST unveils autonomous dark factory platform KAIROS.