Ex-Googler’s prototyping startup raises $8m in series A money

ProtoPie, a South Korea-based software prototyping startup, has raised US$8 million in a series A round led by Korean venture capital firm LB investment. The round also saw participation from Mirae Asset Venture Investment as well as existing investors HB Investment, DevSisters Ventures, and Intops Investment.

With the new round, ProtoPie has raised US$17.9 million in funding to date.

ProtoPie co-founder and CEO Tony Kim / Photo credit: ProtoPie

Founded in 2014 by ex-Googler Tony Kim and former Samsung software engineer Scotty Kim, ProtoPie offers prototyping software as a service for companies to design and validate products more efficiently. It counts Microsoft, Samsung, BMW, Roblox, and Grab among its clients. 

Currently, ProtoPie’s revenue growth primarily comes from outside of South Korea, accounting for 85% of its earnings, of which 35% was in North America.

Tony, who’s also the company’s CEO, said the increase in connected devices – with an average of 25 devices in a US household as of 2021, twice the amount in 2019 – was driving up the demand for digital products.

The startup will use the funding to ramp up product development. It is also expanding its growth and sales teams in North America, adding offices in Canada and the US.

“Companies making digital products for these connected devices need to test and validate the growing complex but everyday interactions consumers have with their connected products,” said Tony.

See also: These are the most active investors in Korea’s startups