Manufacturing physical AI corporations CarbonSix raised a total of $40 million (about 60 billion won) in Series A funding from major domestic and overseas venture capital (VC) firms.
CarbonSix said on the 2nd that IMM Investment, Korea Development Bank (KDB), SV Investment, and U.S.-based Cortentia and A Squared (ASQ) joined as new investors in this round co-led by DSC Investment and LB Investment.
Existing investors Foothill Ventures, Storm Ventures, Zeitgeist Capital, Xquared, and CarbonBlack Fund also joined the follow-on investment.
CarbonSix is a startup that develops robot AI and automation technologies that can be applied immediately on manufacturing floors. It said it has focused on developing products applicable to real manufacturing processes, rather than staying at lab-level tech demos.
The company said its products and technologies are currently being introduced to actual manufacturing sites, leading to customer contracts and revenue. Unlike many robot AI corporations that remain at the proof-of-concept (PoC) stage, it highlighted verification of business viability through field deployment and revenue as a differentiator.
CarbonSix built a data flywheel structure of "tool use–data accumulation–model improvement–better tool delivery," based on on-site data accumulated during the use of automation tools. It said this continually enhances product performance and customer value.
The founding team's background is also drawing attention. Chief Executive Moon Tae-yeon founded industrial AI corporations SuaLab and has experience selling it to Cognex, while Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Seo Hyeong-ju is a robot AI expert with a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Chief Hardware Officer (CHO) Kim Je-hyeok is a former postdoctoral researcher at Yale University in the United States with expertise in robot hand and manipulator design.
CarbonSix CEO Moon Tae-yeon said, "From the start, our goal has been to develop robot AI that connects to customer outcomes on the manufacturing floor rather than the technology itself," adding, "With this funding, we will actively invest in top talent and infrastructure to accelerate the global manufacturing industry's transition to physical AI."
Kang Seong-min, director at DSC Investment, said, "CarbonSix is a rare robot AI corporations that went beyond tech demos to actual field deployment and revenue generation," adding, "We focused on the scalability of a business model where automation tools and on-site data combine to continuously strengthen competitiveness."
Jung Seong-uk, principal at LB Investment, said, "As the physical AI market enters full bloom, CarbonSix has already proven its technological prowess through field applicability and customer value," adding, "We judged that it has ample potential to grow into a global corporations."