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• Period : 8 Dec., 2025 ~ 14 Dec., 2025

Catch up on last week’s top stories from the startup ecosystem in the Korean Startup Weekly News. 

Headline

COMEUP 2025 Concludes Successfully, Strengthening Korea’s Position as Global Startup Hub
COMEUP 2025 concludes with 2,000+ business matches, 275 startups from 46 countries. Korea solidifies position as global innovation hub.

Korean Government News

India’s Konnect Wins Top Prize at 2025 K-Startup Grand Challenge
India’s Konnect wins $68K top prize at 2025 K-Startup Grand Challenge, Korea’s largest international startup competition. The fintech startup beat 2,626 teams from 97 countries with its authentication and payment platform for foreign residents. 

Korea’s AroundX Program Reaches 17 Global Partners, Adding Mercedes-Benz and OpenAI
Korea’s AroundX expands to 17 global partners, adding Mercedes-Benz, OpenAI, HP & Astellas. 1,600+ startups supported since 2019.

Latest Funding News

Check out the latest funding news for Korean startups 

Galaxy Corporation Joins Unicorn Club with $68M Pre-IPO Round, Eyes 2026 IPO
Korean AI entertech company Galaxy Corporation, featuring G-Dragon and Song Kang-ho, achieves unicorn status with $68M pre-IPO funding at $680M valuation. Eyes 2026 listing. 

Neosapience Raises $11.2M in Pre-IPO Round for AI Voice Platform Typecast
Korean AI voice platform Typecast operator Neosapience raises $11.2M pre-IPO round, hitting 2.63M users & $6.8M annual revenue. Plans expansion into conversational AI with backing from Intervest, HB Investment, K2 Investment & Bogwang Investment.

Neubility Raises $17M Series B to Expand Global Robot Service Platform Enhancing Physical AI Robotics Technology
Korean Physical AI robotics startup Neubility raises $17M Series B (total $37.4M) led by Korea Development Bank. Operating 142+ service sites with 80% reorder rate, expanding delivery robots, patrol bots & humanoid tech globally.

Korean Edtech Startup ‘Hodoolabs’ Secures Investment to Expand AI Voice Agent Business
Korean edtech startup Hodoolabs secures investment from Bluepoint Partners to expand its AI voice agent business. Its “Ello” platform enables real-time AI conversations through regular phone calls, with successful deployment in Seoul’s senior care programs. 

Seoul Beauty Club Raises $2M Pre-Seed Funding to Scale K-Beauty Subscription Platform in the U.S.
Korean startup Seoul Beauty Club raises $2M pre-seed to scale its AI-powered personalized K-beauty subscription platform for U.S. women 30-60. Already hit millions in ARR & partnered with 300+ brands. Led by Sazze VC.

SaveTheFarms Secures Seed Funding to Advance Organic Waste-to-Resource Technology
Korean green biotech startup SaveTheFarms secures seed funding from Infobank to advance technology that converts organic waste into biochar and eco-friendly resources. The company was also selected for Korea’s TIPS program.

Korean Startup Interview

Meet startups that are striving for global expansion through exclusive interviews

[Korean Startup Interview] Joomalstory: The Answer to “What Should I Do This Weekend?” for MZ Generation
Joomalstory helps 25-35 office workers find weekend activities through content curation. 130K users, 40% newsletter open rate, seeking $137K seed funding.

[Korean Startup Interview] EHAN Creative: Leading Educational Innovation in the Digital Textbook Era with Generative AI ‘Duwing’
EHAN Creative’s Duwing platform uses generative AI with 93% accuracy to reduce teacher prep time from hours to minutes. With $357K 2024 sales and government partnerships, the startup seeks seed bridge funding.

[Korean Startup Interview] MyIB: Expanding Donations and Business Success Through Matching Gift Platform ‘Give&Match’
MyIB’s Give&Match is Korea’s first matching gift SaaS platform enabling participatory corporate donations. With contracts from Kolmar Holdings and LG Uplus, the startup targets $679M market, seeking Pre-Series A funding.

[Korean Startup Interview] Hypercent: Taking on the Box Office Challenge with Backrooms Horror Co-op Game
Hypercent’s Backroom Company is a horror co-op game with unique storytelling in the Backrooms worldview. With 35M views, 70M subscriber reach, and G-Star award, the startup seeks Pre-Series A funding targeting 1M+ sales.

[Korean Startup Interview] HamadaLabs: Breaking Down AI Technology Barriers with No-Code Platform ‘WindyFlo’
HamadaLabs’ WindyFlo is a no-code LLMOps platform democratizing AI development through drag-and-drop interfaces. With 20K users from 20 countries and enterprise contracts secured, the startup seeks seed funding to expand globally.

[Korean Startup Interview] StudioMetaK: Leading the Content Industry with AI Video and Virtual Human Technology
Studio Meta K secures $21M Series A funding for AI-powered video production and virtual humans, reducing drama costs to 1/10th while achieving global-quality content. Company targets 2027-28 tech IPO with expanding B2B partnerships.