Cryptography Startup 'Cryptolab' Secures 21 Billion KRW Investment

Seoul National University Industrial Mathematics Center's First Incubated Startup
Recognized for Commercialization Potential of Personal Data Protection Core Technology

Cheon Jeong-hee, CEO of CryptoLab (Professor, Department of Mathematical Sciences, Seoul National University)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] CryptoLab, a cryptography technology specialist company led by CEO Jeonghee Cheon, announced on the 5th that it has secured an investment of approximately 21 billion KRW. This investment was led by Stonebridge Ventures, with participation from prominent domestic and international venture capital firms including Altos Ventures and Kiwoom Investment. This round, Series A, comes 10 months after raising funds from LG Uplus, Sollid, and SJ Investment Partners last year.

CryptoLab is a startup holding foundational patents in homomorphic encryption technology, founded in 2017 by Professor Jeonghee Cheon of the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Seoul National University. CryptoLab developed the core technology of the 4th generation homomorphic encryption 'CKKS' and the product 'HEaaN' (Hyean) based on it. This is a case where mathematical theory itself was commercialized into technology, and it is also the first startup incubated by the Seoul National University Center for Industrial Mathematics.

Homomorphic encryption is a 4th generation cryptographic technology that analyzes data while it remains encrypted with customer information. Traditional encryption technologies posed risks of data leakage during the decryption phase required for analysis due to hacker intrusions. However, homomorphic encryption technology faced commercialization challenges because the essential step of real number computation slowed down data processing speed. CryptoLab mathematically solved this problem and developed a homomorphic encryption system capable of processing sensitive personal information in an encrypted state.

Jeonghee Cheon, CEO of CryptoLab, stated, "Through this investment, we will further advance homomorphic encryption and the world's only homomorphic mathematics library, elevating our technology level to an incomparable 'super-gap' that is about two years ahead of global competitors." He added, "We also plan to actively pursue overseas market entry, focusing on the U.S. market, to lead the personalized AI market in finance, healthcare, and marketing sectors."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.