Meet Wrtn, the Korean AI Startup Suddenly Worth More Than $722 Million

Wrtn Technologies, a South Korea-based AI startup, has raised approximately 100 billion won ($72.2 million) in a Series C funding round, putting it at over 1 trillion won ($722 million) on board, according to the company. The milestone makes Wrtn the first Korean AI service startup to surpass the 1 trillion-won valuation mark, it said.

The latest round brings Wrtn’s cumulative funding to about 230 billion won ($166 million). Coreline Ventures and Eugene Asset Management joined as new investors, while existing backers including Goodwater Capital, Antler Global, Woori Venture Partners and Korea Development Bank also participated.

The funding comes as Wrtn seeks to turn growing demand for AI-generated entertainment and character interaction into an international business. Its services include the Wrtn AI platform, Crack in South Korea and OOC, which targets users in North America.

OOC Drives Overseas Revenue

Wrtn’s namesake platform provides users with access to large language models including GPT, Claude and Gemini. The company monetizes its user base through AI-powered services such as OOC and Crack, its character-chat platform.

OOC launched in North America in May and surpassed 10 billion won ($7.22 million) in monthly revenue within three months, according to Wrtn. The company said overseas sales have also exceeded domestic sales.

Total revenue in 2026 is expected to hit 200 billion won ($144.5 million) as compared to 47.1 billion won ($34 million) in 2025, Wrtn said.

The company’s AI entertainment services allow users to interact with AI-generated characters and participate in interactive narratives. Crack was launched as the new name for Wrtn’s character-chat service in South Korea, with features that allow users to create characters and engage in conversations or fictional scenarios.

Investors Back Wrtn’s Global Expansion

Osuke Honda, co-founder and managing partner of new investor Coreline Ventures, described Wrtn’s international growth in terms that reflect the firm’s investment thesis.

Honda said Wrtn is quickly becoming “a global phenomenon,” citing the company’s rapid growth and monetization, as well as the ecosystem impact it is already creating in Korea, Japan, and the United States, as a rare combination, and added that Coreline Ventures has strong confidence in WRTN’s team capabilities and its significant growth potential.

Coreline Ventures is a U.S.-based venture capital firm with offices in Silicon Valley and Tokyo. Its portfolio includes South Korean technology company Kakao, according to Wrtn’s funding announcement.

Wrtn CEO Lee Se-young credited the company’s development since its 2021 founding for the latest investment.

“For the past five years since our founding, we have established ourselves as Korea’s leading AI service company and demonstrated our global competitiveness, which enabled us to successfully complete this funding round,” Lee said. “We will focus on global expansion and further advance our services to meet market expectations, while accelerating our growth as a provider of safe and trustworthy AI services.”

Wrtn Expands AI Safety Measures

The funding round also comes as Wrtn works to strengthen safeguards around its AI character-chat services.

In July, the company launched a user committee involving experts in AI ethics, philosophy and law. Wrtn is also working with the Korea Internet Self-Governance Organization on self-regulatory guidelines for AI character-chatbot services.

For Crack, Wrtn is considering additional measures for younger users, including limits on usage time, stronger parental-consent procedures and lower spending limits. Teenagers account for about 10% of Crack users, according to Wrtn.

The company said the Series C proceeds will support international expansion and further development of its services. With overseas revenue now exceeding domestic sales and OOC scaling rapidly in North America, Wrtn is positioning its consumer AI products for further growth outside South Korea.