Kakao Ventures Invests in AI Optimization Startup Omelet

Kakao Ventures Corp. has recently invested an undisclosed seed amount in Omelet, an early-stage startup from South Korea. Omelet is known for developing industrial operation optimization programs that utilize generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Omelet’s AI-Powered Operational Efficiency

Founded in 2023, Omelet’s programs are designed to enhance operational efficiency and productivity for companies across various industries. The startup’s founder and CEO, Park Jinkyoo, also an associate professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering and AI at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), explained the functionality of these programs.

Omelet offers its program as a Software as a Service (SaaS) solution. The cloud-based program employs generative AI to devise a combinatorial optimization algorithm. This algorithm determines the optimal operational process and resource distribution. Combinatorial optimization is a process used to find an optimal solution from a finite set of possible solutions. Omelet’s program can identify solutions to problems with hundreds of thousands of possible combinations in mere seconds.

Optimization Solver for Industrial Operations

Omelet’s program is applied to improve efficiency and productivity in industrial operations. This includes optimizing facility management, finding the best delivery routes, and prioritizing resource distribution processes. Its combinatorial optimization is said to be more accurate and faster than conventional optimization algorithms.

Currently, Omelet’s software is used with autonomous robots in logistics centers and factories and has proven effective in optimizing logistics transport systems.

Future Plans for Omelet

The startup has plans to launch an Optimization as a Service, Infra, Systems (OaaSIS) program for logistics transport systems this year. Furthermore, Omelet intends to apply its program to chip architecture design and novel drug ingredient development at a later date.

Jang Won-yeol, Kakao Ventures’ principal associate, praised Omelet’s generative AI-powered optimization technology. He predicts that the company’s solutions will address labor shortages at logistics and manufacturing sites and reduce high energy costs.

Kakao Ventures’ Investment Strategy

Kakao Ventures is a venture capital firm under Kakao Corp., a major mobile lifestyle platform company in Korea. The firm, established in 2012, has a history of investing in startups that make AI models faster and cheaper. It has invested in over 200 startups, both domestically and internationally. This recent investment in Omelet is part of Kakao Ventures’ ongoing efforts to support Korean startups developing advanced AI technologies.