AI startup Twelve Labs attracts US$30 mln investment from global companies

South Korean artificial intelligence (AI) startup Twelve Labs said Friday it has attracted a combined US$30 million investment from companies from here and abroad, unveiling plans to strengthen strategic cooperation with them.

Twelve Labs received investment from Snowflake Inc. and Databricks Inc., both U.S.-based data and cloud computing companies, as well as South Korean telecommunications giant SK Telecom Co., according to its officials.

Founded in 2021, the startup has developed hyperscale AI models that understand various types of information in video, such as text, logos, conversation and objective behavior. It has attracted an accumulated $107 million worth of investment from industry leaders, including AI chip giant Nvidia Corp. and Intel, to date.

With the latest investment, Twelve Labs said it will join hands with Databricks to improve the search efficiency of massive video libraries and collaborate with Snowflake to provide advanced video analysis solutions.

The startup also plans to help SK Telecom enhance its AI agent service and strengthen capabilities in the field of multimodal AI, which refers to an AI model that can process multiple types of data, including images, videos and texts.

Last month, Twelve Labs recruited AI expert Kim Yoon, former chief technology officer at SK Telecom, as its chief strategy officer. Kim is also well known for his part in the development of voice assistant service Siri at Apple.