Korea’s Studio Kiko Raises Pre-Series A to Bring ‘Ambient AI Scribe’ to Asia’s Clinics With Neardoc

Studio Kiko, the Korean startup behind the AI clinical documentation service Neardoc, has raised a pre-Series A round from Smilegate Investment, Korea Investment Accelerator, and Strong Ventures. The company disclosed the round on July 6, 2026, but did not reveal the funding amount.

Neardoc is an AI service that listens in real time to conversations between doctors and patients in the exam room and automatically produces completed medical records—SOAP charts—without any manual entry, writing them directly into the electronic medical record (EMR) system. The pitch is simple: physicians can focus on patients instead of paperwork.

This category, known as the “clinical ambient AI scribe,” is one of the fastest-growing segments in medical AI. In the United States, roughly 70% of doctors already use AI charting tools, and the market leaders have commanded striking valuations—Abridge at around $5.5 billion (approximately KRW 7.4 trillion) and Nabla at about $3.6 billion (approximately KRW 4.9 trillion). The global market is projected to grow fivefold, from $6 billion (approximately KRW 8.1 trillion) in 2025 to $30 billion (approximately KRW 40.5 trillion) by 2033.

Korea, by contrast, has lacked a fully realized product until now. Existing services amounted to little more than dictation, and their reliance on general-purpose AI carried the risk of generating information that diverged from clinical facts. Studio Kiko says it overcame those limits with its proprietary medical AI engine, “Xynar,” commercializing what it calls Asia’s first globally competitive, fully realized ambient AI scribe.

The traction has come without advertising. Neardoc spread through word of mouth among physicians and was adopted at more than 300 hospitals and clinics within two months of launch. At those sites, the company reports charting time fell by 70%, the number of patients seen rose 1.5 times, and patient satisfaction (NPS) climbed as well.

Studio Kiko plans to channel the new capital into hiring and product development. It intends to evolve the service toward a clinical decision support system (CDSS) and a “Medical OS,” and to expand into non-English-speaking Asian markets in 2027.

The founding team carries notable pedigree. Studio Kiko is a clinical AI startup led by CEO Sehoon Kim, a co-founder of HR tech platform Wanted Lab who oversaw platform design and new business there; CTO Kyungmuk Ryu, a former head of service development at Wanted Lab; and CMO (Chief Medical Officer) Changmin Lee, a practicing orthopedic specialist who trained at Severance Hospital.

Yujin Cho, team lead at Smilegate Investment, said the startup combines a proven founding team, a proprietary AI engine, and early traction of 300 hospitals won without advertising—positioning it to lead the Asian market. CEO Sehoon Kim said the company aims to build exam rooms where doctors can devote themselves fully to patients, and to create future healthcare infrastructure that makes top-tier care possible anywhere.