Leaflyze, a South Korean developer specializing in AI-driven automated sewing solutions, has secured seed funding ahead of its upcoming service launch. The investment round, led by Bass Ventures with participation from Bluepoint Partners, remains undisclosed in terms of the financial details.

Leaflyze, a combination of “Leaf” referring to fabric pieces and “Analyze,” aims to optimize the production processes for various sewn products through efficient automation systems.

The company was founded by Jongho Park, a Seoul National University computer engineering graduate with extensive AI project experience at Upstage. The leadership team includes CTO Seunghwan Lee, who studied character animation and 3D vision AI at Stanford University, and CPO Jongmin Park, a KAIST computer science graduate who has previously developed robotic control systems at Twinny.

Their inaugural service, “Teddify,” which offers custom-made plush toys completed within three weeks, is set for its official launch in mid-November. Teddify targets individual artists and organizations that possess their own character designs, enabling them to easily commission the production of character dolls by simply submitting image files. The service promises rapid iterations with first to fourth sample productions occurring at two-day intervals, and final products delivered within a week. Production can start from as few as 30 units, significantly reducing inventory costs.

Leaflyze is also developing an AI-based product development automation system that can evaluate the feasibility of transforming design images into tangible items, automatically generating patterns and work orders. CTO Seunghwan Lee noted, “With AI, tasks that previously took days or even weeks can now be completed in just one day. We are committed to continually enhancing the system to function in near-real-time.”

Jeongbong Han, the team leader at Bass Ventures who led the investment, highlighted the potential of Leaflyze, stating, “The sewing industry is a vast market worth 1,000 trillion won, yet it is under-automated, requiring substantial human intervention. Leaflyze’s expertise in AI and robotics equips them to solve challenges that are straightforward for humans but complex for robots, which motivated our investment.”

Leaflyze is channeling the savings from automation into building a mass production system. Unlike most sewing factories that are located in low-wage regions like China or Southeast Asia, Leaflyze operates out of a studio near Nakseongdae Station in Seoul’s Gwanak District.

CPO Jongmin Park added, “While labor costs are indeed higher, by optimizing processes other than sewing, we can establish a competitive mass production system in Korea. This approach not only benefits us in terms of quality control and security but also allows us to quickly deliver products to our customers.”