[StartupRecipe] Government Support Fuels Rapid Growth in Aerospace Startups in Korea

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#Weekly Funding Overview

[Sep. 23~ Sep 27]

The total funds raised by Korean startups of the week is KRW 15.7 Billion.

Company	Inudustry	Amount	Round	Investors
PineOne Communications	Display Components	5 billion	Pre IPO
TwoBytes	Game Company	8.4 billion
Modern	Smart Farm	-		CNT Tech, The Invention Lab, Infobank
ModernLion	NFT	-		Blue Walnut
Giftletter	Mobile Coupon	-	M&A	Hyper Corporation
IdeaOcean	Automated Mechanism Design Company	500 million		Zero One Ventures
AIDIN ROBOTICS	Robot Torque Sensor	15 billion	Series B	Korea Investment Partners, POSCO CAPITAL, CJ Logistics, Samsung Next, GS Ventures
Little One	Infant Health Management Solution	-	Seed	CNT Tech
Diden Robotics	Industrial Robot Solution	-	Seed	Blue Point Partners
Galloping	AI Soccer Training	-	Pre-Series A	The Invention Lab
As We Make	Food Mart Management Solution	11 billion		Nanoori Equity Partners, Startup Research, JB Investment, HG Initiative, A Ventures, We Ventures, Quantum Ventures Korea, Kiwoom Asset Management, B-Hive Investment, The Next Lab, Jurim Partners
Daedong Yeoju-do	Traditional Liquor Curation	-		Sinaju group
WeMeet Mobility	Logistics Solution	20 billion	Series B	Korea & Company (Korea Precision Works), Kiwoom Investment, Bass Investment
In The Keg	Craft Beer Equipment	2.95 billion
OncoSoft		11 billion	Series B	BNH Investment, HB Investment, Devsisters Ventures, Bon Angels Venture Partners, LB Investment
Jikida	Personal Information Compliance	-		MYSC
Unastella	Human space flight platform	19.5 billion	Series A	Hana Ventures, Strong Ventures, Base Investment, InterValue Partners, Daekyo Investment, Astone Ventures, HB Investment, SBI Investment, Woori Venture Partners, Samho Green Investment, KDB Capital
23rd Century Kids	Virtual Artist	1.2 billion	Seed	Kakao Ventures, FuturePlay, Fast Ventures
AIM Intelligence	Generative AI Security	-	Seed	Mashup Ventures
Chabot Mobility	Vehicle Purchase Platform	12 billion	Series C	Hanwha Investment & Securities, Hyundai Investment Partners, GLK Equity Investment, Hana Ventures, Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance, SK Networks, Quantum Ventures
Finit	Stock Supply and Demand Analysis	7 billion	Series A	Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK), Stonebridge Ventures
Eul Bioscience	Exosome Development	15.1 billion	Series A	Crescite Partners, Pathway Partners, Almus Investment, Mirae Asset Venture Investment, Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK)
EverySeam	Engineering Simulation Solution	-	Seed	Lowe Partners
B&B Korea	Cosmetics OEM	130 billion	M&A	Jinbaek Global
Booming Studios	Genre Music Content Company	-	Seed	Jeonbuk
Superb AI	Vision AI All-in-One Solution	13.5 billion	Series C	Doosan Investment, Hyundai Motor Group, Kakao Investment, Samsung Next
Sasung Power	Structural Battery Development	500 million	Pre-Series A	Korea Investment Accelerator
Bueno Company	Mart Platform	-		The Invention Lab
Kuja Communication	Premium Kitchen Appliances	-		Wadiz Partners
FutureScholé	Knowledge Business Platform	4 billion	Series A	Murex Partners
Fit Together	Sports Tech	9.7 billion	Series C	Woori Venture Partners, Smilegate Investment, KB Investment, KDB Capital, Woori Bank, KOSMES, Hashed Ventures
Emocog	Dementia Diagnosis Solution	5 billion		KB Investment
HYPHEN	YouTube Ad Search and Analysis Service	-	Seed	The Ventures
Mediwhale	Medical AI	15.8 billion	Series B2	Korea Development Bank, Woori Venture Partners, IMM Investment, Mirae Asset Securities
Korea Education Partners	Personalized Education AI Development	600 million	Seed	Smilegate Investment, Ulsan CCEI
Tevasoft	Youth Mental Health Management AI Platform	-	Seed	Impact Square
In The Core Business Platform	Digital Concierge	-	M&A	T-Order
Synergy	Energy Solution Company	10 billion	Series A	GS, Hanwha Group
Simple Planet	Cultured meat	-	Grant	Scaleup TIPS
Wiiee	Offline Content One-Stop Service	-	Grant	TIPS
Punta Company	Wellness Food Market	-	Grant	TIPS
Fractal Technologies	M&A Specialist for Small and Medium Enterprises	-	Grant	TIPS
Madde	Semiconductor Component Specialist Company	-	Grant	TIPS
pit In	Electric Vehicle Battery Sharing	-	Grant	TIPS
Eva Cycle	Electric Vehicle Battery Recycling	-	Grant	TIPS
Shinsungo	Cold Chain Solution	-	Grant	TIPS
TwinPig Biolab	Cancer Treatment Technology	-	Grant	Post Tips
Stress Solution	Healthcare	-	Grant	TIPS
Graphene ENG	Low-Cost Graphene Production	-	Grant	TIPS
Links Up	Fishery Data Platform	-	Grant	TIPS

#Major Funding

• WeMeet Mobility raised 20 billion KRW in funding. The company operates AI mobility solution “Luti” and specializes in developing AI-based Transportation Management Systems (TMS). The funds will be used for further technology development.
• Unastella secured 19.5 billion KRW in funding, bringing its total investment to 28 billion KRW. This startup is developing manned private space launch vehicles, with plans to launch its first “Una Express 1” rocket later this year. The funding will be used for technology enhancement and the development of subsequent launch vehicles.
• Medical AI company Mediwhale raised 15.8 billion KRW in funding. They have developed “Dr. Noon CVD,” which predicts cardiovascular disease risks in under a minute through retinal imaging.
• Aiden Robotics, which specializes in robotic force-torque sensors, secured 15 billion KRW in funding. Spun out from the Mechanical Engineering Department of Sungkyunkwan University in 2019, the company possesses expertise in field sensing technology, focusing on next-generation capacitive-based force sensing.

Superb AI raised 13.5 billion KRW in funding. The company supports businesses in adopting AI through its all-in-one platform for computer vision AI development and management. It recently launched an on-premise service and aims for an IPO in 2026.

Chabot Mobility raised 12 billion KRW in funding. Since its inception in 2016, the company has been providing a comprehensive automobile management platform, offering services from car purchases to insurance, finance, and maintenance. The company expects to reach its breakeven point this year and plans for an IPO in 2026.

#Trend Analysis

Government Support Fuels Rapid Growth in Aerospace Startups in Korea

The Korean government established the Korea AeroSpace Administration(KASA) in May this year and is pursuing various support measures to become one of the world’s top five space and aeronautics powers. In addition to promoting private investment and securing talent, recent strengthened cooperation with NASA has increased the possibility of Korea participating in future manned Mars exploration plans.

The government has also announced plans to expand the space development budget to over 1.5 trillion won by 2027 and aims to attract 100 trillion won in investment by 2045. According to the plan to revitalize private investment by creating a fund of over 50 billion won for five years until 2027, a 10 billion won fund was created last year, and another 10 billion won New Space Investment Support Fund is planned for this year.

Under this full-scale government support, Korean space startups are growing rapidly. Contec was listed last year, and Innospace succeeded in going public this year, while many space companies are rapidly growing with the goal of an Initial Public Offering (IPO).

Perigee Aerospace and Nara Space Technology, developers of ultra-small space launch vehicles, have each raised 14 billion won and 20 billion won respectively and are preparing for listing. Kypco Electronics & Aerospace aims to be listed on KOSDAQ this year. IOPS successfully completed pre-IPO investment, recognizing a company value of 100 billion won, and Unastella, which is developing Korea’s first human space flight, raised 19.5 billion won and plans to conduct a test launch to an altitude of 10km within this year. Early-stage startups such as Stellavision, SpaceBeam, and SPAX have also succeeded in attracting investments, gradually revitalizing the ecosystem.

Along with market vitality, there are also concerns. The space industry requires large-scale capital investment but is characterized by difficulties in producing short-term results. As the domestic market is in its early stages, there are concerns about large-scale funding for related startups and post-listing operations. The fact that Contec and Innospace’s listing performance fell short of expectations, and the assessment that Lumir’s value was overvalued when it began listing, reflect these concerns.

However, the government’s strong support and declaration of the goal to become one of the world’s top five space powers are key factors maintaining expectations for growth in related industries and companies. From a long-term perspective, investment and nurturing are expected to continue.