FOBECON, a Korea-based AI construction startup, has raised pre-Series A funding from Xplor Investment and Magellan Technology Investment as it pushes to digitally transform the construction industry.

Founded in January 2024, FOBECON is a ConTech company that’s bringing AI to construction cost estimation. Its flagship product, AutoQTO, uses artificial intelligence to read unstructured data—drawings, quantities, specs—and automatically calculate project costs. The platform targets major construction firms, turning what’s traditionally been a manual, time-intensive process into something automated and standardized.

Magellan Technology Investment was impressed by FOBECON’s ability to handle messy, unstructured data and its track record of actually implementing the technology in real projects. The firm sees the startup as a company that could fundamentally reshape how construction works and wants to be a long-term partner in that journey.

What caught both investors’ attention was FOBECON’s hands-on experience—proof-of-concept projects with major builders and real commercialization—combined with AI technology that’s specifically built for construction data. The round included money from construction company CVCs, which should open doors to partnerships with major players like GS Engineering & Construction and Hoban Construction.

The funding will go toward building out AutoQTO 3.0, the next version of the platform. FOBECON plans to improve how accurately it reads drawings, add features that let teams collaborate on big projects, and introduce cost prediction and risk analysis based on past estimates. The goal is to become the standard platform for Korea’s major and mid-sized construction firms.

A company representative said bringing construction CVCs and tech investors together in one round was particularly meaningful. “It shows that people believe in both the technology and the market opportunity,” the representative said. “We’re going to use AutoQTO to help Korean construction companies go digital faster, and eventually build a platform that works globally. Long-term, we’re not just about estimates—we want to be the data hub for the entire construction lifecycle, from building to operations.”