Kakao Ventures
Venture capitalSeongnam ยท Pre-SeedโSeries A ยท 8 people tracked
Investment thesis
Kakao Ventures positions itself as more than a purely financial investor, acting as a steadfast partner ('co-pilot') to the startups in its portfolio. It focuses on the strong, undeniable potential of innovators tackling the hardest problems, rather than the reasons a venture might fail. The firm brings together specialist investment professionals in deep tech, services, digital healthcare, and gaming, offering experience and know-how so founders can concentrate on growth. It emphasizes standing beside its 'family' companies in good times and bad, using the best interest of the startup as its guiding decision criterion.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team ยท 8 people
from public directoriesWhat they invest in
from 38 of 98 portfolio companiesAI & Machine Learning ร27Healthtech ร8Advanced Manufacturing ร6Deep Tech ร6Medical Devices ร5Biotech ร4Enterprise Software ร4Robotics ร4
HQs:South Koreaร20United Statesร5
Investments ยท 98 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathConportlab provides a no-code IoT and AI operations platform that connects factory floor equipment and data systems to enable manufacturers to transition from manual, experience-dependent operations to data-driven AI-based production management.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningIoTSeoul, KR
Rapport Labs operates Quiit (ํธ์), a lifestyle platform and shopping app targeting South Korea's 40sโ50s consumer demographic, along with related services such as Paldogam and Rapport Studio.
ConsumerE-commerceMarketplaces
Wecover builds GPT-based AI solutions that process complex documents such as insurance policies, powering accurate, privacy-preserving chatbots and content tools for uses like customer service, legal case analysis, and marketing.
AI & Machine LearningInsurTechSaaSCambridge, US
meatOS is an autonomous manufacturing operations platform that integrates field data, business systems, and worker interactions through AI agents for the food and meat processing value chain.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningFoodTech
Lee Jaehyuk(Co-founder, Manufacturing AI Expert)Hong Juyeol(Co-founder, Food Industry Expert)
21Market operates a marketplace for refurbished and used mobile phones in South Korea, using AI-powered inspection systems to verify device condition and performance.
AI & Machine LearningCircular EconomyMarketplacesRetail TechSeoul, KR
A blockchain-focused research and infrastructure company operating three business units: FP Research provides analysis on digital assets and protocols with focus on Asia, FP Validated operates validator and node infrastructure for proof-of-stake networks, and FP Institution advises financial institutions and enterprises on blockchain deployment and regulatory strategy across Asian markets.
Crypto & Web3Data & InfrastructureEnterprise Software
a2sys develops an agent-native inference operating system that integrates AI, software, and hardware on memory-centric infrastructure, optimized for agentic workloads and LLM-based tool-calling at scale.
AI & Machine LearningDeep TechDeveloper Tools
ActNova develops "ActVerse", a web-based software that analyzes videos of animal experiments to automatically and accurately assess animal behavior.
AI & Machine LearningBiotechSaaS
Algorix provides AI research and development services spanning NLP, generative AI, computer vision, and audio processing, as well as cloud infrastructure and digital platform design for enterprise clients.
AI & Machine LearningCloud ComputingEnterprise Software
San Jose, US
Keug Jae Bang(Executive Officer, Director)Minjoon Seo(Executive Officer, Director)
Connecteve (Connective/CONNEVO) develops evidence-based AI models for healthcare, validated with over 100,000 images and supported by technology and image patents and published technical papers.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtech
Austin, US
Joshua Duyan(Director)Youngmok Yun(Executive Officer, Director)Ilyong Choi(Director)Ashish Deshpande(Director)
CoroLogic builds an on-premises software platform for coronary angiography that uses generative AI to reconstruct lower-frame-rate cardiac imaging in real-time, enabling significant dose reduction without compromising diagnostic quality.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthMedical DevicesSeongnam, KR
Hwang Kyungrae(Co-founder & CEO)Kang Si-hyeok(Co-founder & CMO)Choi Youngrak(Co-founder & CTO)
Dream-o creates casual games designed to deliver a sense of accomplishment through learning and growth.
GamingSeoul, KR
Bbiyak is a mobile application that helps users manage GLP-1 obesity treatment through tracking weight loss, injection dosages, appetite control, and exercise.
HealthtechWellness & FitnessSeoul, KR
What-Time is a luxury goods trading platform that buys and sells high-end items through a network of dealers across 7 countries, using real-time market data to optimize selling prices for customers.
B2B MarketplacesData & InfrastructureSeoul, KR
Flonics develops medical imaging software that automates blood flow analysis using MRI technology for diagnosis and management of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
AI & Machine LearningHealthtechMedical DevicesSeoul, KR
2D material technology developer for 3D AI semiconductor implementation
Giftshed builds a single-cell cancer data platform that images billions of cells from whole blood, uses Vision AI and robotics to detect and isolate rare circulating tumor cells, and applies single-cell RNA sequencing and multi-omics to guide precision cancer therapy.
AI & Machine LearningBiotechHealthtech
Homeco is a home repair and maintenance service platform that connects customers with licensed professionals for tasks like plumbing, electrical work, and painting.
B2B MarketplacesPropTechSeoul, KR
Kompass develops a rapid hormone diagnostic analyzer for point-of-care testing in fertility treatment.
FemTechHealthtechMedical Devices
Compact blood diagnostics platform
Magnendo develops a magnetically steerable soft-robotic guidewire system for neurovascular endovascular procedures, enabling physicians to access hard-to-reach targets in the brain's blood vessels for stroke and aneurysm treatment.
BiotechDeep TechMedical DevicesRobotics
Yoonho Kim(President, CEO and Secretary)Xuanhe Zhao(Director)Jeffrey Arnold(Chairman and Treasurer)Aman Patel(Chief Medical Officer)Meir Rosenberg(Chief Development Officer)
Mars Auto builds autonomous Class 8 trucks for commercial cargo transportation in Korea and the United States, using a vision-focused AI driving system that does not rely on pre-mapped routes.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningLogistics & Supply ChainMobility & TransportationRoboticsSeoul, KR
Ilsu Park(Founder)inGyuri Im(Executive Officer, Director, Promoter)
MEDiThings develops an AI-based wearable device that monitors bladder activity for patients with voiding disorders, using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and biosignal analysis.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthMedical Devices
Online and offline education and digital care platform for caregivers
Parallax Worlds provides AI-powered robots for factory floors, combining 3D digital twin technology with robot training to enable production-ready deployment in two weeks.
Advanced ManufacturingAI & Machine LearningRobotics
Sandy Floor is a creative game development studio that creates mobile casual games and PC-based indie games across multiple platforms.
GamingSeongnam, KR
์ด์ถฉ์ฐฝ
STREAM Studio builds AI-powered fitness and lifestyle applications, including a push-up habit-building app and a discontinued K-pop dance studio service.
AI & Machine LearningConsumerWellness & FitnessSeoul, KR
Ultrasound-responsive bio-metamaterial solution for healthcare
Tynapse provides a runtime validation and audit platform for AI systems operating in regulated and mission-critical environments.
AI & Machine LearningCybersecurityEnterprise SoftwareSeoul, KR
Multi-AI agent operations infrastructure
Vibers AI trains and deploys AI agents tailored for retail businesses to automate functions across finance, ERP, CRM, marketing, and customer acquisition.
AI & Machine LearningRetail TechSaaS
ViseCare provides an AI-powered platform for home health and caregiver management, combining online caregiver training, care coordination tools, and client management systems for agencies and families.
AI & Machine LearningHealthtechSaaS
Vital Robotics develops AI-powered robotics solutions.
AI & Machine LearningRobotics
Yeji X provides AI-driven prediction and intervention recommendations for value-based care organizations by analyzing patient EHR, imaging, and claims data to identify high-risk beneficiaries and recommend timely interventions.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareHealthtechNashville, US
David Jung(CEO & Founder)Andrew Rittler(Head of Business Development)Professor Chang-Min Park(Scientific Advisor)
Imaging biomarker platform for brain disease treatment development
Game developer focused on casual global games
Frequently asked questions
- What stage does Kakao Ventures invest at?
- Kakao Ventures invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A stages.
- What is Kakao Ventures's typical check size?
- Kakao Ventures typically writes checks of $297K โ $27M.
- What sectors does Kakao Ventures focus on?
- Kakao Ventures focuses on AgTech, AI & Machine Learning, Consumer, Deep Tech, Developer Tools, Digital Health, E-commerce, EdTech, Energy, Enterprise Software, Gaming, Logistics & Supply Chain, Media & Entertainment, Quantum Computing, Robotics, SaaS, Space Tech.
- Where is Kakao Ventures located?
- Kakao Ventures is headquartered in Seongnam, KR.
- Does Kakao Ventures lead rounds?
- Yes, Kakao Ventures leads investment rounds.
Media ยท Podcasts & interviews
from their channel๐ค ํผ์ง์ปฌ AI ์์ ์ ๋ณต! AI๊ฐ ๋์ ๋จ๊ณ ์ค์ค๋ก ํ๋จํ๋ ์๋, ์ฐฝ์ ๊ฐ์๊ฒ ์ด๋ฆฌ๋ ๊ธฐํ | ๋ฏธ๋๊ด์ฐฐ์์ ์คํ์ค
์นด์นด์ค๋ฒค์ฒ์ค Kakao Ventures
๐ฅ ์คํํธ์ ์ฃผ์ฃผ์ดํ ์ด์ ๋ฆฌ! "์คํํธ์ ๋ ์ฃผ์ด ํด์ผ ํ๋์?" ์ฃผ์ด ๋น์ผ ๊ผญ ์ฑ๊ฒจ์ผ ํ๋ ๊ฒ 3๊ฐ์ง | ์ ๋ ๋ฐค
์นด์นด์ค๋ฒค์ฒ์ค Kakao Ventures
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