This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 2:41 p.m. on Apr. 20, 2026.
If you only weigh the possibility of an exit in 2–3 years, money won't go to the real technologies that change the world.
Baek In-su, who took the new helm at venture capital (VC) Smilegate Investment, pointed to "short-term performance first" as the top task for improvement. He added, "If a technology will survive 10 years from now, we should invest now even if it means taking on risk."
After working as an engineer at Samsung Electronics' semiconductor division, Baek joined Smilegate Investment in 2011 and became an investment manager. Over the next 15 years, he led the investment process, including finding early startups, forming large funds, and exiting through initial public offerings (IPO), and in Apr. he became the new CEO.
Upon taking office, Baek moved to lay the groundwork for long-term investing. He simultaneously pushed to establish an in-house "investment strategy office" and completed the formation of a 60 billion won offshore fund. The goal is to preempt future promising technologies instead of chasing fads and to increase investments in the United States.
Saying "Korea is in such a crisis that you can hardly see a future beyond semiconductors," Baek said, "My job is to find 'pain-killer' technologies that will break through this crisis." We met Baek at the Smilegate Investment office in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It was his first interview since becoming CEO.
◇ "We don't need vitamins… Focus on 'pain-killer' tech that breaks AI's limits"
Baek, who headed Smilegate Investment's Investment Division 1, has a clear investment philosophy. Rather than services akin to vitamins that are nice to have in addition to the main nutrients, he focuses on finding and investing in pain-killer (analgesic) technologies that solve chronic problems in existing industries.
Baek is keeping the same investment philosophy amid the artificial intelligence (AI) boom. He said, "The large language model (LLM) battle has already become the domain of deep-pocketed big tech," adding, "What we are watching are technologies that will solve AI's fatal weaknesses in power consumption and compute efficiency."
He continued, "Limiting it to AI, representative investment targets include technologies that reduce the token sprawl of Generative AI or overcome AI's memory limits," and added, "While others chase trends looking at the possibility of an exit in 2–3 years, we aim to secure in advance the technologies that will become industry infrastructure."
Baek is pushing to establish the investment strategy office. The office will serve as an internal task force that draws the technology map for 10 years out. The idea is to invest from the early stages even in technologies like quantum computing and nuclear fusion that may not make money now if they are technologies that will surely arrive in 10 years.
Baek said, "Because investment managers inevitably get buried in the deals right in front of them, we plan to set up a dedicated team to comprehensively scan future technologies," adding, "We will also find good corporations, with the early investment team focusing on 10-year-out technologies and the venture team closely watching the five-year horizon."
◇ "We will tolerate short-term losses at the U.S. unit… Pursuing 'patient capital' with the group"
Baek also plans to put effort into Smilegate Investment's push into the United States. The firm established a U.S. entity last year and invested in Hixfield, a U.S. video production AI automation technology corporation. This year, using funds from the parent company Smilegate, it also formed a 60 billion won offshore fund.
Smilegate Investment's entry into the United States is seen as bold even within the industry. It entered anew as major domestic VCs had already tried to crack the U.S. market but failed to gain a foothold and scaled back. In particular, the plan is to endure initial losses until the market foothold is secured.
Baek explained, "The United States is a closed market connected by networks, but most domestic VCs decided to withdraw after looking only at about three years of performance," adding, "Landing within three years is wishful thinking. Above all, the group formed a consensus by saying, 'Take root properly' instead of focusing on short-term results."
Smilegate Investment aims to go beyond merely expanding networks to become a "practical bridge" between the United States, the global hub of technology, and the dynamic Asian market. With the establishment of the entity last year, it also committed capital to three local U.S. VCs to build a deal-sourcing network.
Baek said, "We will help innovative U.S. corporations generate real revenue in Asia and strengthen two-way support through local bases so that promising Korean founders can successfully land in the North American market," adding, "We have also begun supporting domestic biotech corporations in entering the U.S."
◇ "From Orange Planet to PE… Building a full-cycle investment value chain"
The future Baek envisions for Smilegate Investment is to be a "full-cycle partner for promising technology corporations." Corporations that sprout in the group's startup foundation "Orange Planet" are taken on by the early investment team, then the main fund supports scale-up, and finally PE (private equity) continues with growth investing.
Baek emphasized, "We are a large firm with about 1.5 trillion won in assets under management, yet we have the infrastructure to nurture 50 early founding teams each year free of charge at a cost of 7 billion won annually," adding, "We will strengthen links with the startup foundation to further bolster investment support from early growth aid to scale-up."
Baek also picked secondary batteries as a representative "undervalued sector." He said, "People are enthusiastic about Robotics or satellites, but the core energy source that powers all those devices is secondary batteries," adding, "We are watching battery management systems (BMS) and dedicated semiconductors."
He also said, "True risk management for a VC is not about preventing principal loss, but about not missing opportunities to invest in promising corporations that can grow 100-fold," adding, "We will grow assets under management to around 2 trillion won and support entrepreneurs who strive to make the world better."