Summary
- PIP Labs is a blockchain-based digital asset platform that has secured large-scale investments through the world's largest VC.
- DSRV manages over 4 trillion KRW in digital assets in the global market through blockchain network verification technology.
- Team Blackbird is gaining attention as a blockchain data analysis platform used by over 2 million people worldwide.
PIP Labs, the developer of the blockchain-based intellectual property (IP) platform 'Story', recently entered into a strategic partnership with the image AI company Stability AI. Founded in the United States, PIP Labs is a blockchain platform that converts various IPs into digital assets to protect the rights of IP holders and support monetization. The company's co-founder, Seung-yoon Lee, is a serial entrepreneur. He founded the web novel platform Radish in 2016 and sold it to Kakao Entertainment for $440 million (approximately 639.3 billion KRW) in 2021.
Korean blockchain startups are expanding their businesses. They are enhancing their competitiveness through various means, such as utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) and pursuing initial public offerings (IPOs). PIP Labs is a representative case. Last year, it was valued at $2.25 billion (approximately 3.271 trillion KRW) and secured an additional $80 million (approximately 116.3 billion KRW) in investment. Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), the world's largest venture capital (VC), invested three times, and Samsung Next, the VC subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, along with Bang Si-hyuk, chairman of HYBE, also invested in the company.
Stability AI is a leading AI startup in the UK. It is the developer of the open-source AI model Stable Diffusion. Through this collaboration, the two companies plan to establish a fair compensation system for developers and others who contribute to AI-generated content.
Blockchain infrastructure company DSRV is the first domestic blockchain company to pursue a listing. DSRV's main business is validators. The technology that verifies whether blockchain networks are functioning properly is its main source of revenue. Receiving cryptocurrency related to blockchain as a fee is also a differentiating factor from other companies. Over 95% of DSRV's clients are overseas companies.
In the global Ethereum staking (a method of earning profits in exchange for depositing digital assets) market, it ranks first domestically and ninth globally in terms of assets under management, managing over 4 trillion KRW in digital assets. Naver, KB Investment, and Samsung Next are major investors in DSRV.
Team Blackbird is also a notable domestic company in the global blockchain market. It developed the blockchain data analysis platform CryptoQuant. Based on cryptocurrency wallet identification technology, it analyzes the movement traces of various cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, and provides them to investors. The service is used by over 2 million people worldwide. Hashed, Atinum Investment, and IMM Investment have invested in Team Blackbird.
Reporter Kim Joo-wan kjwan@hankyung.com
Korea Economic Daily
hankyung@bloomingbit.ioThe Korea Economic Daily Global is a digital media where latest news on Korean companies, industries, and financial markets.
