"Our current goal is to submit a preliminary listing review to the stock exchange in March."
Jin Park, CEO of Acryl, an artificial intelligence (AI) company, stated in a recent New Year interview with ZDNet Korea, "This year, we will focus more on overseas business."
Founded in March 2011, Acryl supplies AI solutions specialized for various industries, including government agencies, manufacturing, defense, and healthcare. The company has developed and provides the comprehensive AI platform "JONATHAN," which supports everything from A to Z in AI adoption for enterprises and public institutions to enhance productivity. Additionally, it offers the AI-based healthcare solution "NADIA," expanding its presence in the healthcare sector. Acryl also possesses its proprietary small-scale LLM, "A-LLM."
In 2023, Acryl surpassed 10 billion KRW in revenue for the first time, followed by significant growth last year. This year, the company aims to reach 20 billion KRW in revenue. Having secured strategic investments from LG Electronics and SK in 2018, Acryl is now on the verge of going public on KOSDAQ. The company was selected as a "Preliminary AI Unicorn Company" by the Ministry of Science and ICT in 2020 and was also named in Forbes Korea’s "2024 Korea AI 50."
In this interview, CEO Park emphasized the performance enhancement of Acryl’s flagship AI platform "JONATHAN," advancing it from "MLOps (Machine Learning Operations)" to "LLMOps (Large Language Model Operations)."
MLOps refers to a set of practices that automate and streamline machine learning (ML) workflows and deployment. It integrates ML application development (Dev) with ML system deployment and operation (Ops). By using MLOps, organizations can automate and standardize processes throughout the ML lifecycle, including model development, testing, integration, deployment, and infrastructure management. In contrast, LLMOps is the MLOps version specifically for LLMs. If the target is a general machine learning (deep learning) model, it is MLOps, whereas LLMOps applies to ultra-large language models (LLMs) with numerous parameters and training data.
Acryl’s LLMOps is based on its proprietary LLM, "A-LLM." "JONATHAN" as an LLMOps platform has already gained recognition for its technology, being presented at prestigious international AI conferences such as IEEE Access, ATC USENIX, and NeurIPS. CEO Park stated that this year’s LLMOps will not only improve training and inference technologies but also provide a completely differentiated experience from competing products.
He further explained, "We plan to officially launch FlightBase, which supports end-to-end AI model development and deployment; ModelBase, which specializes in fine-tuning open-source LLMs; and ServiceBase, which aids in building LLM-RAG systems." Along with "JONATHAN," Acryl will also enhance its AI-based healthcare system "NADIA" and conduct pilot services in hospitals where "NADIA" is installed.
Last year, Acryl achieved several significant milestones. In particular, the company developed and launched the small-scale LLM "A-LLM," which topped the leaderboard in the open-source category in the era of LLMs. CEO Park stated, "Through the development of A-LLM, we gained diverse experiences in LLM fine-tuning and performance, and we established a foundation for securing a small-scale LLM specialized for the healthcare sector, which Acryl aims to target."
Acryl also secured a national service contract using "A-LLM," winning the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs' digital human service project last year. This project digitally recreated three key figures of the independence movement, including Kim Gu, drawing public attention. Additionally, Acryl successfully launched the chatbot service for providing information to North Korea under the Ministry of Unification’s initiative. During this process, the company identified technical issues essential for LLM-RAG systems to provide a high-quality user experience. CEO Park added, "One of the most memorable achievements last year was seeing digital versions of historical figures like Kim Gu appear on the giant digital billboard in Gwanghwamun."
Acryl also raised a 20 billion KRW fund last year and received an "A" rating in the preliminary technology assessment. "We have now applied for the main technology evaluation. Establishing the foundation for IPO preparations was one of our key accomplishments last year," Park stated.
CEO Park holds a Ph.D. from KAIST, with his doctoral thesis focused on emotional AI. Regarding this year’s market outlook, he commented, "Global tech giants like Microsoft and Google will aggressively expand their cloud businesses with their powerful LLMs such as Gemini and the ChatGPT series. However, given the increasing economic uncertainty in South Korea, there may be a difference in momentum between the private and public sectors for large-scale cloud-based LLM business adoption. I hope that public sector-led LLM projects will positively influence the private sector."
For the overseas market, Park stated, "While the industrial value of LLMs has yet to be clearly defined, everyone agrees on their adoption benefits, so LLM-based business expansion will continue. However, since both industry and academia recognize the economic limitations of model training, new LLMs utilizing innovative inference techniques will emerge."
Acryl plans to expand its collaboration with healthcare companies this year. The company has already signed contracts with major healthcare firms, where it is developing specialized AI services using "JONATHAN" and LLM-based technology. These cases will be presented at global conferences and exhibitions.
The company is also strengthening partnerships with AI semiconductor firms, using "JONATHAN" to initiate pilot projects for intelligent home devices and edge servers. To expand exports, Acryl will collaborate with Central Asian countries such as Uzbekistan and Karakalpakstan. In Southeast Asia, the company has formed partnerships in Malaysia and Indonesia and plans to expand to Singapore as a stepping stone for entry into the U.S. market. Regarding Europe, Park stated, "We will leverage our established presence in Uzbekistan for our European expansion."
Acryl, which has been focusing on medical AI, acquired Fine Healthcare, a company it has collaborated with since 2017, to create synergies. The company’s workforce has now grown to approximately 120 employees. To foster a creative and challenging corporate culture, Acryl strengthened its HR organization last year. Notably, CEO Park personally conducted 40 hours of AI training for employees in 2023 and again in 2024, sharing AI-related issues that the company must address.
CEO Park is also a YouTuber dedicated to making AI easily accessible to the public. He has been running a YouTube channel called "AI Jin GoalMok" for about ten months. One of his videos, titled "Four Hidden Plans of Apple You Didn't Know," has surpassed 1,800 views. Park mentioned that he has already filmed content for "AI Jin GoalMok" through March, adding with a warm smile, "I have high expectations."
Acryl is making full preparations for its IPO on KOSDAQ. The company conducted a preliminary technology assessment last December and received an A rating. Based on this, it has applied for the main technology evaluation. CEO Park stated, "If there are no major issues, our goal is to submit the preliminary listing review to the stock exchange in March. One of my biggest goals this year is for Acryl to be the first domestic LLMOps company to pass the IPO review, making private LLMs the easiest to commercialize."
There are over 2,000 AI-specialized companies in Korea, most of which do not make money. CEO Park said, "Acrylic is making money," adding, "AI companies that make money are those that deliver user value, and we believe we are the company that has received that 'award'."
Emphasizing the importance of supplying the AI technology that the market demands in a timely manner, CEO Park stated, "Acrylic doesn't aim for the best technology, but the priority is to quickly deliver the 'necessary technology' to the 'right customers' and make it easy for them to use. In other words, our goal is to help our customers make money, and Acrylic’s mission has always been to remain in the revenue structure created in this way, and will continue to do so in the future."