South Korean artificial intelligence startup Wrtn Technologies raised 25 billion won ($18.33 million) in its latest round of funding as investors flock to AI bets and Seoul backs the development of next-generation AI technologies.
Investors such as the Asian arm of Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm BlueRun Ventures and the corporate venture capital arm of Japan’s LY Corp joined Wrtn’s pre-series B funding, the startup said in a statement.
Wrtn declined to comment on its valuation as of the latest funding round. The investment follows the raising of 15 billion won in Series A funding in June 2023.
Wrtn, which aims to make it easier for people to use various existing AI models and build their own services such as chatbots, has reached 2.2 million monthly active users as of now, up from around 40,000 in the first quarter of last year after launching its AI portal in January 2023.
It attracted interest from investors looking to bet on the consumer side of the AI boom, founder and CEO Seyoung Lee told Reuters.
With so many AI models coming to market, “the difference between first and second place in each field is shrinking… a large user-based platform that can gather them will appear,” which Wrtn hopes to be, Lee said.
The investment comes as South Korea announced in April its target to become the No. 3 global player in AI and related semiconductors by 2030, including backing the development of next-generation AI core technologies and the formation of cloud resources that use domestic chips.
($1 = 1,363.7400 won)
Reuters