South Korean AI chip startup DEEPX announced it is preparing to list its shares domestically, and the company is open to a possible U.S. listing afterward. The move comes as the global appetite for AI hardware continues to grow, and as DEEPX looks to raise the capital it needs to scale beyond its current footprint.
What DEEPX Does
Founded in 2018 by former Apple chip designer Lokwon Kim, DEEPX focuses on what it calls “physical AI,” meaning AI embedded directly into devices such as robots, autonomous vehicles, and factory systems. Rather than building chips for cloud-based AI workloads, the company designs semiconductors that run AI functions on the device itself, without needing a constant internet connection.
Its flagship chip, the DX-M1, operates at an average power consumption of just 2 to 3 watts, which the company says delivers roughly 20 times higher power efficiency than Nvidia’s Jetson Orin for comparable workloads, at about one-tenth the cost. DeepX has also positioned itself as a full-stack player.
The company declared itself a “physical AI infrastructure company” and unveiled a three-stage strategy linking chips, hardware platforms, and software ecosystems. Under this model, DEEPX supplies the AI chips, while partners including Advantech, Dell, and Raspberry Pi develop hardware platforms, and software partners such as Ultralytics and Baidu build AI applications on top.
The Path to an IPO
DEEPX CEO Lokwon Kim told Reuters that the company plans to select banks to manage its IPO after wrapping up its ongoing funding round, which it expects to complete in the first half of this year. DEEPX hired Morgan Stanley last year to assist with the pre-IPO capital raise, and the company is still preparing to raise significantly more than the 110 billion won ($79 million) it secured in a Series C round last year. The startup aims to go public in about two years.
DEEPX CFO Young Cho confirmed the company’s priority is a listing on the Korean stock market, but noted that a secondary U.S. listing through American Depositary Receipts could be considered later. The executives did not disclose what the ongoing funding round would value the company at.
Revenue Targets and Commercial Traction
DEEPX is targeting approximately $40 million in revenue this year, including $25 million from product sales, as it focuses on building a commercial track record ahead of the IPO. The company says it has secured more than 30 purchase orders and entered mass production of its DX-M1 chip, supported by demand for low-power, cost-efficient AI chips.
On the partnerships side, DEEPX counts China’s Baidu among its customers, and is working with Hyundai on robots powered by generative AI. The head of Hyundai’s Robotics LAB said the collaboration is part of an effort to build an ecosystem of on-device computing partners in South Korea and internationally.
A Crowded but Opportunity-Rich Market for DEEPX
DEEPX is entering the public markets at a time when the AI chip sector is both highly competitive and attracting serious investor attention. Its strategy of focusing on on-device chips is a larger part of an interesting direction South Korean AI chip startups have decided to follow, making the country home to the world’s top two memory chip makers, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.
Whether DEEPX can convert its current commercial momentum into a successful public debut will largely depend on how effectively it closes this funding round.
