Lablup, a South Korea-based AI research and development service platform company, announced that it has received KRW 10.5 billion in Series A funding. The investment was led by LB Investment, IBK, K2 Investment Partners, and Daesung Private Equity.

With the recent ChatGPT craze increasing interest in generative AI services, investors recognized the value of Lablup, which develops and sells Backend.AI, a platform that enables companies to efficiently operate GPUs, AI semiconductors, and data required for AI learning and services.

Currently, Backend.AI is used in various AI development and service fields, including maximizing GPU cluster utilization, intuitive user experience and management, low-cost/low-latency AI model and service technology, and various AI semiconductor support to develop huge language models and generate AI such as pictures, text, and music, and utilize AI training platforms.

LablUp’s Backend.AI is used in more than 70 companies and institutions, including Korean conglomerates such as Samsung Electronics, KT, LG Electronics, and CJ, as well as the Bank of Korea, the Korea Health Insurance Agency, and GIST, and is the only DGX-Ready software optimized for NVIDIA’s AI computing supercomputer, DGX, in the Asia Pacific region.

“LablUp is leading the market by providing unrivaled GPU infrastructure services in the AI space, and is expected to grow rapidly in the future with the technology and know-how essential for the AI era,” said Park Ji-hyung of LB Investment.

“As interest in AI research, development, and services continues to grow globally, the demand for solutions that can provide much-needed resources for GPU usage and cost reduction is also growing rapidly,” said Jungkyu Shin, CEO of LablUp. “With this investment, we will be able to play a leading role in the AI platform solution market not only in Korea but also globally.”