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Nearthlab

Category: Robotics / Embodied AI

A global leader in autonomous drone solutions and 'Physical AI' that provides end-to-end industrial inspection and advanced defense reconnaissance systems. Nearthlab was founded in 2015. The company is led by Jayhyuk Choi. Based in Seoul, South Korea. Team size: 90-100. Total funding raised: $50.0M. Latest round: Series D2. Key investors include KDB Bank, SBVA (formerly SoftBank Ventures Asia), IMM Investment, Stonebridge Ventures, K2 Investment Partners, Mirae Asset Capital, SBI Investment, Company K Partners, Shinhan Capital.

Founded
2015
Headquarters
Seoul, South Korea
Team size
90-100
Total funding
$50.0M

Value proposition

Enhances operational safety and efficiency by replacing dangerous manual inspections with autonomous 'Physical AI' drones that can navigate GPS-denied and high-wind environments with millimeter-level precision.

Products and solutions

NearthWIND Pro/Mobile: Autonomous wind turbine inspection solutions (compatible with off-the-shelf drones)., AiDEN: A compact, AI-powered autonomous drone for reconnaissance and surveillance in defense and security., KAiDEN: A high-speed interceptor drone designed for Counter-UAS (Anti-drone) operations., XAiDEN: A swarm-capable autonomous attack drone designed to carry and deploy 60mm mortar shells., Nearthlab Drone Station: An automated 'drone-in-a-box' hangar for 24/7 autonomous charging and data offloading., Nearthlab Insight: A cloud-based data management platform for defect analysis and digital twin creation.

Unique value

The only company globally that has successfully commercialized 'Physical AI'—AI that acts in the physical world—at a scale capable of inspecting over 50% of a country's wind farms and transitioning into offensive/defensive military applications.

Target customer

Global wind farm operators (O&M), national defense agencies, public safety departments, and infrastructure maintenance firms.

Industries served

Renewable Energy (Wind Power), Defense & National Security, Public Safety & Emergency Response, Infrastructure (Bridges, Dams, and Construction)

Technology advantage

Proprietary vision-based AI flight control algorithms that allow drones to operate autonomously in complex, non-GPS environments (like turbine blades or tunnels) where standard drones fail.

How they differentiate

Proprietary 'Physical AI' vision-based flight control that enables autonomous navigation in high-wind and GPS-denied environments without expensive LiDAR. Unlike hardware-locked competitors, Nearthlab's software is platform-agnostic, allowing deployment on standard commercial drones (e.g., DJI).

Main competitors

SkySpecs, Sulzer Schmid, Clobotics, Anduril

Key partnerships

Global Wind Leaders: Siemens Gamesa, Vestas, and GE Renewable Energy, Strategic Tech Partners: SoftBank Corp, NVIDIA (Inception/GTC member), and DJI (Official Solutions Partner), Defense: ROK Ministry of Defense and US Department of Defense (global defense export projects)

Notable customers

Siemens Gamesa, Vestas, GE Renewable Energy, Korea Southern Power (KOSPO), ROK Ministry of Defense, RWE

Major milestones

Won CES 2025 'Best of Innovation' Award for the Nearthlab Drone Station, Passed KOSDAQ IPO Technology Evaluation with double 'A' grades in Dec 2025, Completed Series D2 funding reaching a cumulative 65 billion KRW (~$50M USD) in early 2026, Successfully verified 'KAiDEN' interceptor drone performance in live-fire tests with L3Harris, Targeting KOSDAQ listing in 2026

Growth metrics

Maintains 2x annual revenue growth; successfully deployed solutions in over 40 countries; recently passed KOSDAQ IPO preliminary technology assessment with 'A·A' ratings.

Market positioning

Global leader in wind turbine autonomous inspection and a rising challenger in the 'Physical AI' defense sector for reconnaissance and counter-UAS operations.

Geographic focus

South Korea (Market leader with ~60% wind farm share), USA, Germany (European hub), Japan, and the Middle East (defense export).

Patents and IP

Holds numerous patents in 'Vision-based Autonomous Flight Control' and 'AI Damage Detection,' recognized by the IR52 Jang Young Sil Award and the CES 2025 Best of Innovation Award.

About Jayhyuk Choi

Jayhyuk Choi is an aerospace engineering specialist who began his career as a researcher at Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction in the wind power division. During his tenure, he identified critical safety risks and inefficiencies in manual wind turbine inspections, which inspired him to co-found Nearthlab in 2015. He is recognized as a pioneer in 'Physical AI', applying autonomous flight technology to industrial infrastructure and defense.

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