[StartupRecipe] Is the Creator Economy Boom Over?

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#Weekly Funding Overview

[July.22~ July. 26]

The total funds raised by Korean startups of the week is KRW 66.3 Billion.

Company	Inudustry	Amount	Round	Investors
SOSLAB	LADAR	-		IPO
odd.nt	Tech brand	-	Seed	Series Ventuers
Stephow	Manual production tool	-	Seed	Mashup Ventures, The Ventures, Antler Korea
CNRI	Carbon neutral	-	Pre-Series A	Seoul Techno Holdings
Reverse mountain	HR	-	Seed	Company X, Green Wave Ventures
Kuve works	Used vehicle export	-	Seed	HL Holdings
Kreator networks		3.5 billion	Series A	TS Investment, KC Investment Partners, Kolon Investment, HB Investment
Toff mobility	UAM	-	Seed	Sopoong Ventures, Next Dream Angel Club
APGREEN	Clean hydrogen production	-	Grant	TIPS
Hulam Pro	HR	-
Skelter labs	AI	-	M&A	Metanet tplatform
Trans farmer	Farmtech	-	Grant	TIPS
Viva innovation	Healthcare	2 billion		Samsung Venture Investment
Xup	Robotics	-		Blue Point Partners
Sinsungo	Coldchain	-	Seed	Blue Point Partners
Foundobjet	Recycling plastic	-	Seed	Blue Point Partners
Eatda	Smart order pickup	-	Seed	Blue Point Partners
MASKIT	Online ticket	-	Seed	Blue Point Partners
Ninewatt	Energy	-		Xplor Investment
C2Y	Interior B2B	-		Xplor Investment
Rovothome	AIoT Robotics	-		Xplor Investment
Zero next materials	Construction materials Upcycling	-		Xplor Investment
D.To. Inc	AI Architectural	-		Xplor Investment
MxT Biotech	Bio	-	Grant	TIPS
Local	Foodtech	3.5 billion	Pre-Series A	Smart Study Ventures, Bokwang Investments, Altoran Ventures
Rebellions	AI Chip	20 billion		Aramco
Macarong	Mobility	5 billion	Series A	Murex Partners
Fractal Technology	AI agent for M&A	700 million	Seed	Spring Camp, Antler Korea
Spresto	Security	-	Grant	TIPS
Econnect	Eco friendly materials	-	Grant	TIPS
Homeay	E-commerce	-	Grant	TIPS
9Folders	Software development	-	M&A	Jiransoft
10K1M	AI video	-	Grant	Deeptech TIPS
Ginplus	Real estate	-	M&A	Crazyalpaca
Promenade	Business research	-	Seed	500global
AMCR	Fashion brand	75 billion	M&A	Kim bongjin
Dynamic industry	Net zero	-	Grant	TIPS
Vettech	Pet tech	-	Pre-SeriesA Bridge	New Paradigm Investment, Kiwoom Investment Asset Management
Delivus	Delivery	14.6 billion	Series B	Hashed Ventures, Laguna Investments, KDB Korea Development Bank, DB Financial Investments
Petbom	Pet sitter	-	Seed	The Invention Lab
Mordern	Farmtech	-	Seed	The Invention Lab
Byaht	Fintech	-	Seed	The Invention Lab
Bubbleshare	Marketing solution	-	Grant	TIPS

#Major Funding

• Rebellions, an AI semiconductor company, has secured a 20 billion KRW investment from Aramco’s CVC and Wa’ed Ventures. This investment is expected to accelerate their entry into the Saudi market and expedite ongoing business discussions with Aramco.
• Delivus, the operator of the AI logistics platform Delivery Rabbit, has raised 14.6 billion KRW in investment. The funds will be used to establish a new automated logistics hub and to enhance AI-based arrival guarantee optimization technologies and systems.
• AMCR, the maker of golf apparel brand AmazingCre, has been acquired by Kim Bong-jin, the former founder of Baedal Minjok. Kim Bong-jin acquired a 43% stake in AMC for 75 billion KRW.

#Trend Analysis

Is the Creator Economy Boom Over?

The creator economy, which saw rapid growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, has experienced a significant decline in interest recently. Global media company The information reported that investments in the creator economy dropped by 58% in 2023 compared to the previous year.

In South Korea, 2022 saw a surge of interest and capital inflow into the sector as platforms and services for creators emerged. Fandom platforms enabling K-pop artists and creators to interact with fans and receive support attracted substantial funding. Notable examples include Makestar and Be My Friends, which secured investments of over 10 billion won, and Bigc, which raised 4.5 billion won immediately after its establishment.

However, 2023 saw a decrease in investments, primarily consisting of early-stage funding, and 2024 has yet to see any major investment cases.

Despite the investment slowdown, expectations for market growth remain high. Ongoing investments in related industries, albeit in early stages, and the emergence of diverse services in South Korea support this optimism. The creator market’s immaturity and changes in investment cycles contribute to its high long-term growth potential.

While large-scale investments are absent in South Korea, a wider variety of services are successfully attracting funding compared to previous years. Recent successful investments include fintech for creators, creator commerce, and creator cultivation and management services, moving beyond fandom platforms. The growth of short-form video content has led to the rise of services supporting creators in this field.

New solutions used by creators, platforms connecting influencers with brands for revenue generation, and fintech services improving creators’ financial accessibility are also emerging.

The growth in the creator sector was accelerated by the e-commerce boom and investment frenzy during the COVID-19 period. The current slowdown can be seen as a natural consequence of these special factors dissipating. However, industry diversification and the emergence of new services demonstrate the sector’s potential for continued development, supporting forecasts of further innovation and growth in the future.

Picorp	New media Entertainment	4 billion	Series A
Kreators network	data-driven label services for artists	3.5billion	Series A
Nurihaus	K-Beauty creator community	2 billion	Series A
Byaht	Creator fintech	–	Seed
Softcone	Creator incubator	–	Seed
Doers	Influencer marketing	–	Pre-series A
Aiden lab	Influencer marketing	–	Series A