Korean Founder Lands $80 Million from A16z to Reinvent IP Protection in the Age of AI

PIP Labs, the Palo Alto-based software development startup founded by a visionary Korean origin entrepreneur, has announced the successful completion of an $80 million Series B funding round. The round was led by prominent venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (A16z), with participation from Polychain Capital. This latest funding has propelled PIP Labs to a valuation of $2.25 billion, bringing its total capital raised to $140 million across three funding rounds

At the helm of PIP Labs are Seung Yoon Lee, an Oxford-educated South Korea native, and Jason Zhao, a Stanford alumni who worked two years at Google’s AI subsidiary, DeepMind. Seung Yoon Lee, first made waves in Silicon Valley with his serialized fiction app, Radish, which has now emerged as a major player in the blockchain space. After selling Radish for $440 million in 2021, Lee co-founded PIP Labs with a mission to protect and tokenize IP using blockchain technology.

Seungyoon Lee, CEO of PIP Labs / Photo = Provided by PIP Labs — Seungyoon Lee, CEO of PIP Labs / Photo = PIP Labs

The Story Blockchain

PIP Labs, the developer behind the Story blockchain (formerly known as Story Protocol), is focused on revolutionizing how intellectual property (IP) is stored, tracked, and monetized. The platform helps creators protect their IP and generate sustainable profits. Creators can upload their IP to the blockchain network through Story and tokenize it. The platform addresses the growing need to safeguard IP in an era dominated by artificial intelligence, where large language models extensively crawl the web for training data.

Story aims to provide a frictionless system for the registration, protection, and monetization of IP, a “multi-trillion-dollar” asset class that is increasingly vulnerable in the digital age. By establishing clear usage and monetization rules, Story ensures that creators are fairly compensated for their original content, incentivizing the continued generation of new data and creative works.

Seung Yoon Lee highlighted the importance of protecting creators’ rights in the AI era, stating, “Training AI models through creators’ IP without paying any compensation removes the incentive for creators to create original IP. It will also have a negative impact on the development of AI technology in the long term.” He added, “Creators can program IP ownership and licenses into the blockchain network as metadata through Story, and AI models can comply with the specified data and immediately distribute fair profits to creators without complicated legal procedures.”

A Strong Investor Lineup

The Series B round, which also saw participation from Polychain Capital, Stability AI’s Scott Trowbridge, and NFT collector Cozomo de’ Medici, brings the total funding for PIP Labs to $140 million. PIP Labs finally caught the attention of Andreessen Horowitz, which has now led three rounds of investment in the startup, including the latest $80 million infusion. “They’re tripling down, which is pretty rare from what I know,” Lee remarked in a media statement.

Chris Dixon, a partner at A16z, emphasized the critical role of Story Protocol in the evolving digital landscape: “Story is creating the infrastructure necessary for the AI era. Blockchain is a very suitable system for large-scale participants to act according to economic incentives. It ensures that creators are fairly compensated for the IP they provide to AI systems.”

Already, Story has seen significant traction, with over 200 teams and more than 20 million addressable IPs utilizing the platform. The seamless registry of IPs through Story encourages widespread industry adoption, positioning PIP Labs at the forefront of a new era in intellectual property management.

With the backing of major investors and a strong leadership team, PIP Labs is poised to continue its trajectory of innovation and growth. The successful Series B funding round underscores the confidence investors have in the company’s vision to revolutionize how intellectual property is protected and monetized in the digital age.

This remarkable achievement not only highlights the potential of Story but also shines a spotlight on the pivotal role that Korean founders are playing in the global tech landscape, driving forward cutting-edge solutions that address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.

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