Physical AI company Real World (RLWRLD, CEO Ryu Jung-hee) has secured Seed 2 investment to address growing demand for collaboration with domestic and international strategic partners.
Following the previous Seed 1 round, which raised approximately $15 million (approximately 21 billion KRW), RealWorld secured an additional $26 million (approximately 39 billion KRW) in this Seed 2 round. Including this, the cumulative seed investment amount reaches approximately $41 million (approximately 60 billion KRW). RealWorld explained that the additional investment round was necessary as requests for joint projects and mid- to long-term collaborations in real-world industries rapidly increased after the Seed 1 round, moving beyond the technology verification and initial demonstration stages.
Seed 2 was participated by financial investors such as global venture capital firm Headline Asia, Z Venture Capital Corporation, the corporate venture capital (CVC) of Z Holdings, the merged entity of Yahoo Japan and Line, and strategic investors such as CJ Logistics, Kakao Investment, Lotte Ventures, Hanwha Asset Management, and Mirae Asset Emart New Growth Investment Fund 1.
In particular, Headline Asia, which has been supporting the growth of global technology companies with its headquarters in Silicon Valley, plans to use this investment to expand its global business, including North America, and explore connecting industrial ecosystems. Z Ventures will also play a role in accelerating discussions on verification and commercialization in the Japanese market, leveraging its business network across the telecommunications, distribution, and service industries. A number of Korean and Japanese investors are already working on PoC or RX (Robotics Transformation) projects, and the scope of collaboration is gradually expanding. Currently, collaborations are underway with major domestic companies, including CJ Logistics and Lotte, based on logistics, distribution, and service sites, and some projects have entered the joint verification stage following the signing of MOUs.
"The next phase of robotics begins with 'scalable intelligence,' where robots learn directly from real-world production sites like factories and apply the experience they gain to more fields," explained Akio Tanaka, founding partner of Headline Asia. "In East Asia, where labor shortages are growing, RealWorld's ability to work closely with key industry partners and accumulate field data is a crucial foundation for building long-term competitiveness."
CJ Logistics CFO Lee Jong-hoon said, “The competitiveness of future logistics does not depend on simple facility automation, but on how quickly we can secure an advanced AI brain that understands the field and makes decisions on its own.” He added, “Through collaboration and strategic investment with Real World, we will jointly advance the robot foundation model that can be immediately applied to logistics sites and accelerate the transition of logistics centers to AI-based autonomous operations.”
"Seed 2 wasn't simply a round to secure more funding, but rather a choice to expand our alliance to drive industrial transformation together," said Ryu Joong-hee, CEO of Real World. "Physical AI is meaningless unless it's proven in the field. Starting with the model release this year, we will fully launch a global RX with strategic partners."
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