SK Telecom invested a total of $7.2 billion in U.S. startups Allganize and Imprimed

Korean carrier SK Telecom has invested a total of KRW 9.4 billion ($7.2 billion) in artificial intelligence (AI) startups Allganize and Imprimed, local newspaper The Korea Economic Daily reported.

As part of these investments, the Korean carrier injected KRW 5.4 billion and KRW 4 billion in Allganize and Imprimed, respectively, according to the report.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Allganize provides more than 200 corporate clients with a large language model (LLM) via generative AI. Some of the firm’s customers are Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Finance, retail giant Aeon Co. and Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co.

The report noted that corporate clients can buy apps from Allganize’s online market. The apps, powered by LLMs, can quickly analyze documents related to fields like law, human resources and marketing and provide summarized information, the report added.

The report also highlighted that SK Telecom is planning to combine its AI cloud computing technologies with Allganize’s apps to advance the LLM and expand the online app business.

Meanwhile, California-headquartered Imprimed provides personalized predictions on survival and response to specific cancer treatments. The company analyzes traits of a patient’s cancer cells and drugs to help identify an optimal treatment for the patient.

Following this investment, SK Telecom and Imprimed will work together to develop an AI model to predict cancer patients’ responses by analyzing clinical traits and genetic information, the report added.

K-AI Alliance, a group of AI startups backed by SK Telecom, has currently 16 companies. The alliance operates three sectors – AI service, AI transformation (AIX) and AI infrastructure.

In September, SK Telecom had announced its ambition to become a global artificial intelligence  company by strengthening its own AI competitiveness and cooperating with partners globally.

The carrier’s CEO Ryu Young-sang unveiled the telco’s new ‘AI Pyramid Strategy’ centered around three key areas including AI infrastructure, AI transformation (AIX) and AI service.

Under this new strategy, Ryu said that the carrier expects the proportion of AI-related investment to approximately triple from 12% over the past five years to 33% over the next five years.

The company noted that AI Infrastructure is an area where SK Telecom’s technological capabilities are concentrated. The area consists of AI data centers, AI semiconductors and multiple LLMs.

Going forward, the Korean operator also plans to leverage its AI service-related experience and knowhow accumulated in the Korean market to develop a personal AI assistant service that can attract global customers. The company expects that its partnerships with diverse global players — including the Global Telco AI Alliance — will help accelerate its progress in the AI field.