Ocean Smart Raises Seed Funding to Build AI-Native Platform for Shipping Operations

Ocean Smart, a South Korean AI-native maritime platform startup, has raised seed funding from Korea Investment Accelerator.

The company is building a platform designed to digitize the core decision-making workflows of the shipping industry — much like how Global Distribution Systems (GDS) transformed operations in aviation. Today, critical tasks in maritime logistics such as route planning, capacity allocation, and schedule coordination still rely heavily on email and paper-based processes. When disruptions like port congestion occur, the resulting operational inefficiencies and cost overruns tend to compound quickly.

Ocean Smart’s platform integrates data from both mainline vessels and feeder ships to generate optimized routing plans, while dynamically adjusting schedules and cost projections in real time as operational variables change during voyages.

The company was founded by Changhyun Yoo, a serial entrepreneur with experience at Hanjin Shipping and Cyberlogitec who previously founded Opus9, a digital freight platform, in Silicon Valley. The team also includes Gregory White, whose background spans global shipping leader Maersk and maritime platform INTTRA, contributing to the company’s business development efforts. Within its first year, Ocean Smart has already begun generating revenue from an Asia-based carrier.

“With this investment, we plan to focus on building out our initial feeder network and rapidly scaling our AI-driven operational optimization infrastructure,” said Changhyun Yoo, CEO of Ocean Smart.