LG Electronics Selects Four In-House Ventures for Spin-Off, Launching as Independent Startups

The four in-house ventures that were ultimately selected through LG Electronics' in-house venture program "Studio341" will become independent. These B2B startups, equipped with capabilities in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and advanced materials, are set to prove their competitiveness across a range of industrial sectors.

LG Electronics announced on April 27 that it recently held a demo day for Studio341 at Magok Science Park in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, where it selected four in-house venture teams qualified for final spin-off.

LG Electronics recently held the in-house venture program 'Studio341' demo day at Magok Science Park in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, selecting four in-house venture teams qualified for final spin-off. The photo shows Eugene Ho Yoo, CEO of the final selected in-house venture 'Prekitchenlab,' giving a presentation. LG Electronics

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The selected teams are: ▲ "Seca," an AI solution for detecting hardware design data errors; ▲ "Machineflow," an enterprise AI coding agent for improving code quality; ▲ "Freakitchen Lab," which provides kitchen automation robots and B2B operational management solutions; and ▲ "Atomer," a fabless-based advanced flame-retardant material design solution.

These teams made it to the finals last July, overcoming a competition ratio of approximately 12 to 1, and went through expert mentoring before passing the final evaluation. The final assessment was conducted by representatives from LG Electronics, startup incubation specialists, and venture capitalists. The evaluation covered not only the business value of each item but also the team’s composition and capabilities, assessing their competitiveness from multiple perspectives.

According to the evaluation results, each team will receive up to 400 million won in seed investment. The spin-off process is expected to be completed by July.

Even after the spin-off, LG Electronics will continue to provide necessary support for a certain period to help the startups successfully establish themselves in the market. In particular, the company aims to seek mutual synergies in the fields of AI automation solutions, robotics, and advanced materials.

Studio341 is a program launched in 2023 to discover in-house ventures that will carry on the pioneering and innovative spirit of LG Electronics’ founding company, Goldstar. The name is inspired by the address of Goldstar’s first headquarters: 341 Yeonji-dong, Busanjin-gu, Busan. LG Electronics collaborates closely with Bluepoint Partners, a startup incubation specialist, throughout the selection, mentoring, and spin-off processes.

The startups that spun off for the first time in 2024 have already shown rapid growth and proven their business and technological capabilities, being selected for government programs such as TIPS (Tech Incubator Program for Startup) and DIPS (Deep-tech Incubator Program for Startup) by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, in areas including AI, robotics, materials, and platforms. Since last year, the program has also expanded to include open innovation with external startups that offer solutions for creating new customer experiences.

Kang Sungjin, Head of Partnerships at LG Electronics, stated, "As the era of Physical AI arrives, the partnership ecosystem among companies with strengths in various technologies and solutions is becoming increasingly important. We will spare no effort to ensure that the in-house ventures spun off through Studio341 can grow into reliable partners for LG Electronics."

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