MakinaRocks, a startup specializing in enterprise AI solutions, announced on Wednesday that it had attracted 12 billion won ($10 million) in a recent Series A investment round joined by strategic investors such as LG Technology Ventures, Hyundai Motor Company, and Applied Ventures.
During the funding round, financial investors included Shinhan Investment Corp., HB Investment, Daesung Private Equity, and Korea Development Bank.
MakinaRocks creates and develops industrial AI solutions that streamline production through deep learning and reinforcement learning-based anomaly detection and intelligent control technologies. It solves various issues arising from the manufacturing industry with complex processes such as in batteries, semiconductors, automobiles, and in pharmaceutical fields.
Established in 2017, the company spun off in 2018 from SK Telecom’s ICT R&D Center. MakinaRocks has headquarters in Seoul and Silicon Valley.
In 2019, MakinaRocks attracted funding support from angel investors, including Hyundai Motor, Naver D2 Startup Factory, and SK Telecom. The company also acquired initial funding from the same companies during a seed investment stage last 2018.
Expanding to the Global Market
Currently, MachinaRocks is working with key companies in target markets, including strategic investors, to apply solutions to production lines. The startup shows results in improving operation rate and quality through equipment failure and quality abnormality prediction and enhancing production efficiency based on intelligent control.
According to MakinaRocks, it plans to secure major domestic and foreign major companies as customers through investment attractions. The company added that it aims to expand its portfolio and build various business models based on its technologies, including developing a cloud-based SaaS solution that extends our existing on-premises solutions to advance into the global market.
A company official said that the latest investment round would serve as a stepping stone for MakinaRocks to expand globally by discovering new business models and recruiting crucial talent in data analysis, AI development, business planning, and product development.
