SECA
Category: AI Agents
AI-for-EDA (electronic design automation) platform that connects scattered hardware design data — requirements docs, part specs, schematics, BOM, drawings — to automatically verify design-change propagation and automate part recommendation and circuit design/verification. SECA was founded in 2026. The company is led by Kim Jun-hyung (김준형). Based in Seoul, South Korea. Team size: 11-50. Latest round: Seed. Key investors include LG Electronics, BluePoint Partners.
- Founded
- 2026
- Headquarters
- Seoul, South Korea
- Team size
- 11-50
Value proposition
Uses a knowledge-graph representation of design element relationships plus a rule engine (for strict checks like voltage/temperature) combined with proprietary LLM+VLM (for parsing technical docs/drawings) to automatically trace the impact of design changes across manufacturing documentation — reducing manual verification workload by 80%+ per company claims.
Products and solutions
AI for EDA platform: design-change impact tracing via knowledge graph, rule engine for strict spec verification, LLM+VLM for document/drawing interpretation, part recommendation, circuit design & verification automation. Roadmap: hardware-specialized foundation model trained on circuit connectivity, physical constraints, and design history.
Unique value
First-mover building a hardware-domain-specialized foundation model for AI-driven EDA, validated via live pilot projects with major manufacturers rather than a generic LLM wrapper.
Target customer
Electronics, automotive, and semiconductor manufacturers with complex, multi-team hardware design workflows (e.g. consumer electronics, automotive/EV component, chip design teams).
Industries served
Consumer electronics, automotive/EV (electrical systems), semiconductors
Technology advantage
Proprietary LLM+VLM combined with a knowledge-graph representation of design dependencies and a deterministic rule engine for physically strict checks (voltage/temperature); building toward a hardware-specialized foundation model trained on circuit/physical-constraint/design-history data.
How they differentiate
Focuses specifically on hardware design *data integration and change-impact verification* across the full design lifecycle (requirements→BOM→drawings) rather than chip-layout/RTL generation, and is backed by direct pilot deployments inside a major electronics manufacturer (LG Electronics) plus automotive/aerospace/semiconductor pilots (Airbus, DB HiTek).
Main competitors
Cognichip, ChipAgents, Agentrys (AI-native EDA startups), incumbent EDA giants Synopsys and Cadence (~60%+ combined market share) increasingly adding AI features.
Key partnerships
LG Electronics (H&A and VS/Vehicle component Solutions divisions), DB HiTek/DB Global Chip, Airbus — active pilot/proof-of-concept projects, spun out of LG Electronics x BluePoint Partners joint venture-builder program 'Studio341', NVIDIA Inception, AWS Startup Programs, Hyundai Motor Group, NAVER D2SF
Notable customers
LG Electronics (H&A and VS divisions, pilot/PoC), DB HiTek (DB Global Chip), Airbus (pilot project), BOS Semiconductor (listed client)
Major milestones
2023: LG Electronics launches 'Studio341' internal venture program (with BluePoint Partners) to revive Goldstar-era entrepreneurial spirit, 2026: SECA selected as one of 4 teams spun off from Studio341 into an independent company, Aug 19, 2026: SECA raises seed funding from LG Electronics and BluePoint Partners as part of the spin-off, with CEO Kim Jun-hyung confirmed as current leader in the announcement.
Growth metrics
Company claims 80%+ reduction in manual design-verification workload in pilot deployments (per company statement, unverified independently).
Market positioning
Early-stage but well-capitalized-by-relationship challenger aiming to lead the emerging 'AI for EDA' category by building a hardware-specialized foundation model, positioned against both AI-native EDA startups and legacy EDA incumbents.
Geographic focus
South Korea initially (LG Electronics ecosystem), expanding to global manufacturers (Airbus in Europe already a pilot partner).
About Kim Jun-hyung (김준형)
Ex-LG Electronics Vehicle Component Solutions (VS) division — design software and data/AI engineering; won LG CEO Award for a generative-AI-based SW documentation project.
Latest news about SECA
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Official website: https://secalabs.com
