Korean AI startup Persona AI has closed an $8.2 million USD (12 billion KRW) pre-IPO round, pushing its total funding to $28 million USD (41 billion KRW). The round drew interest from an unusual mix of investors, led by defense contractor LIG Nex1 and IBK Capital‘s Defense Innovation Fund, alongside DB HiTek‘s venture arm DB Technology Investment, HB Investment, and AIM Investment.

Persona AI’s core business centers on GEN AICC (Generative AI Contact Center) solutions, which apply generative AI technologies to enterprise customer engagement. Powered by its proprietary AI engine SONA, the company offers AI services that can be deployed by financial institutions, enterprises, and public-sector organizations through both on-premise and subscription-based models.

In addition to its core contact center solutions, Persona AI is expanding into the edge AI and physical AI domains by leveraging model lightweighting technologies, enabling AI deployment on resource-constrained devices.

According to the company, the pre-IPO investment was driven by growing recognition that Persona AI’s diverse AI models can serve as a core operating system for the rapidly expanding physical AI ecosystem. The company’s technology is designed to run not only on AI PCs and servers but also across a wide range of future devices as edge AI, demonstrating strong competitiveness and commercialization potential.

Notably, Persona AI has gained global recognition for its proprietary AI technologies that operate without internet connectivity or GPU infrastructure, winning CES Innovation Awards for two consecutive years. The company was awarded the Stone Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit in July last year and was selected as a Pre-Unicorn company by South Korea’s Ministry of SMEs and Startups in September.

Persona AI’s technology portfolio includes STT (speech-to-text engines), sLLMs (small large language models), and VLA (physical AI models), which can be applied across a wide range of industries, underscoring the company’s technological depth and scalability.

The company plans to use the newly raised capital to strengthen its AX (AI Agent Experience) capabilities and accelerate the development and commercialization of physical AI solutions. Building on SONA’s advanced natural language processing technology, PersonaAI aims to extend its influence beyond GEN AICC into the broader physical AI sector.

“We are committed to competing in the global market and showcasing Korea’s strength in AI on the world stage, elevating the global profile of K-AI,” a PersonaAI spokesperson said.

Following the completion of the pre-IPO round, PersonaAI will begin full-scale preparations for an initial public offering (IPO) later this year. The company plans to proceed with formal listing procedures, including technology evaluations, in collaboration with its lead underwriter, Mirae Asset Securities.