Korea’s manufacturing giants are backing Config — the TSMC of robot data

Asia’s expansion into physical AI is being driven by the same manufacturing strength that established the region as a global industrial leader. In countries such as South Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan, manufacturing continues to play a major role in economic development. Unlike economies that rely more heavily on services and software, these nations have built their growth on large-scale production, export-oriented industries, and highly efficient supply chains. That industrial backbone is now influencing both the adoption of artificial intelligence and the direction of investment.

This context makes the rise of Config especially notable. The Seoul- and San Jose-based startup, which develops the data infrastructure for robotics foundation models (RFMs), has attracted investment from venture divisions tied to some of South Korea’s largest manufacturing groups.

Samsung Venture Investment led Config’s oversubscribed $27 million seed round, valuing the company at over $200 million and increasing its total funding to $35 million. Strategic investors also included ZER01NE Ventures, LG Technology Ventures, and SKT America. Additional support came from investors such as Pieter Abbeel, alongside Mirae Asset Ventures, Korea Development Bank, GS Futures, Kakao Ventures, and Z Ventures.

Founded in January 2025, Config was created by CEO Minjoon Seo, formerly of Meta and TwelveLabs, together with co-founders from Waymo, Google, and Naver. Rather than manufacturing robots directly, the company focuses on supplying the data robots need to learn and function effectively. Its core belief is that high-quality data will determine how capable and practical future robots become.

Config aims to become a foundational supplier for the robotics industry, similar to the role TSMC plays in semiconductor manufacturing. Just as TSMC produces chips for companies like Apple, NVIDIA, and AMD without competing directly against them, Config wants to provide the essential data layer powering robotics AI. This strategy aligns with a growing trend among manufacturers seeking to develop proprietary robot AI systems instead of depending entirely on external vendors.

According to COO and co-founder Jack Bang, the company is already generating revenue. Its customer base includes major manufacturers, system integrators, and businesses operating in agriculture and defense. Other companies active in the same space include Physical Intelligence, Generalist AI, and Skild AI.

The new funding will support three major goals: expanding data operations in Vietnam and Seoul to reach 1 million hours of collected data, growing the company’s enterprise platform business to $10 million in annual recurring revenue by the end of 2027, and introducing a cloud-based robot-as-a-service platform that enables companies to run Config’s foundation model without relying on onboard hardware.