Korean edtech company Hodoolabs has secured investment from Bluepoint Partners as it expands into the AI voice agent business.

Hodoolabs’ core solution “Ello” leverages existing telephone networks to provide real-time AI conversations through voice alone—without requiring app installation, registration, or internet connection. Companies can build AI voice services through simple API integration, allowing users to handle guidance, inquiries, reservations, and reminders through regular phone calls. The platform delivers natural turn-taking through ultra-low latency conversation technology trained on over 500 million voice data points.

The first public sector implementation is Seoul’s Jungnang District’s “AI Senior Safety Talk.” The service makes three regular check-in calls per week to deliver lifestyle and welfare information to elderly residents, with immediate alerts sent to relevant departments when abnormal signals are detected.

After just three months since the full service launch, Hodoolabs is currently in business negotiations with multiple local governments including Yeongdeungpo, Guro, and Geumcheon districts, building on the successful operations in Jungnang District. On the private sector side, the company is pursuing various business opportunities including establishing a year-end tax settlement consultation center for Insung Accounting Corporation.

Hodoolabs’ technical competitiveness stems from its team, which includes Wook Jeong as CTO—who led the development of KakaoTalk’s FaceTalk and VoiceTalk—along with core full-stack developers from the VoiceTalk team.

CEO Minwoo Kim brings extensive AI and edtech business experience, including serving as Asia representative for Silicon Valley AI company Kidaptive.

Insung Lee, Senior Investment Manager at Bluepoint Partners, said, “This is an impressive team with not only technical capabilities but also proven experience leading large-scale businesses. They’re implementing services that make AI easily accessible to everyone through phone-based platforms such as senior care.”

Hodoolabs CEO Minwoo Kim stated, “We aim to enable more people to conveniently utilize AI through the most universal channel—the telephone. We will use this investment to advance our technology and expand our market presence while building partnerships across various sectors.”