What Mashup Ventures does

Mashup Ventures (매쉬업벤처스) is a Seoul-based early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2013 by Lee Taekkyung, co-founder of Daum Communications (now Kakao), originally operating as 'Mashup Angels' before rebranding in February 2024. The firm invests at pre-seed and seed stages into Korean and Korean-origin startups across AI, robotics, commerce, healthcare, and broader IT, deploying up to KRW 500M per company plus follow-on capital. Its core service stack combines direct equity investment, official TIPS (Tech Incubator Program for Startups) operator services providing up to KRW 1.5B in R&D co-funding per deep-tech team, and a 'Value Growth Network' of 50+ former-founder mentors who run 1:1 mentoring, seminars, and portfolio peer-learning. The firm has invested in ~220 startups, generated 13 IPO/M&A exits (including Bucketplace/Today's House and Styleshare's KRW 300B sale to Musinsa), and as of 2024–2025 reports a KRW 11.3 trillion cumulative portfolio valuation and KRW 2.5 trillion in follow-on capital raised by its portfolio companies.

The firm's revenue model is two-layered: recurring management fees on its KRW 275 billion 'Mashup Ventures Value Growth Venture Investment Fund' (formed November 2023 with private capital from alumni founders), plus transaction-based economics from IPO and M&A exits across the portfolio. Distribution is built on direct applications via the firm website, TIPS operator channels, a quarterly 'Mashup Counseling Center' for external startups, university partnerships with Yonsei, Seoul National, and Korea University, and a syndicated co-investor network that includes Naver D2SF, Kakao Ventures, 500 Global, Schmidt Ventures, Base Ventures, and The Ventures. In 2025, the firm was selected as a Global Specialized TIPS Operator and created Korea's first 'AI Partner' role to reposition its investment process as AI-Native.

Mashup Ventures operates primarily within South Korea but signals a growing cross-border footprint through US-domiciled portfolio investments (Khameleon, Morph Systems), India market activity, and overseas LP / partner engagement via its Global TIPS designation. The firm is privately held with no parent company and is led by a partner team of former operators (Daum, Nearlab, Ridi, Greenlabs, Moloco, Bucketplace).

Name

Mashup Ventures

Legal name

매쉬업벤처스

Website

https://mashupventures.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Early-Stage Venture Capital

NAICS

Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259), Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)

akta.pro primary industry

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Early-Stage Venture Capital (Pre-Seed/Seed) (FSANAAAA), Corporate Accelerators & Startup Programs (FSANAHAD), Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM)

Keywords

• Early-stage venture capital
• Seed stage investments
• TIPS program operator
• Startup growth network
• Portfolio company support

Headquarters

HQ city

Seongnam

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns: Mashup Ventures generates returns through successful exits (IPO and M&A) of portfolio companies. They have facilitated 13 IPO/M&A events among their portfolio companies.
2. Management Fees: VC firm generates revenue through management fees from their investment funds, including the 275 billion KRW 'Mashup Ventures Value Growth Venture Investment Fund'.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Mashup Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests seed and pre-seed capital (up to KRW 500 million per company, plus follow-on) in Korean startups across AI, Robotics, Commerce, Healthcare, and broader IT. Beyond capital, it operates the TIPS government R&D funding program (up to KRW 1.5 billion per deep-tech team), a Global TIPS specialized track, and a Growth Network of 50+ former founders providing 1:1 mentoring and seminars to portfolio companies.

Product overview

Mashup Ventures is an early-stage startup investment firm (VC) founded in 2013, operating as a 'startup companion' that provides capital investment and operational support to early-stage IT startups. The firm offers a tiered portfolio of services centered around its core investment vehicle (Seed/Pre-Seed investment up to KRW 500M per company), supplemented by the TIPS accelerator program operations (up to KRW 1.5B R&D support per Deep Tech TIPS team), a Growth Network of 50+ mentor-founders, and a calendar of portfolio support programs including Mashup AI Day, GenAI Sprint, Mashup Seminar, and Mashup Family Day events. The firm has invested in ~220 portfolio companies across AI, Robotics, Commerce, Healthcare, and SaaS, managing a cumulative corporate value of KRW 11.3 trillion with 13 companies achieving IPO or M&A exits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Seed / Pre-Seed Investment
• TIPS Program Operations
• Global TIPS Track
• Growth Network (Mentor Network)
• Value-Up Support

Quantifiable outcome

• 11.3 trillion KRW cumulative portfolio valuation
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability16 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Google CloudcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 4 September 2024Partnership for GenAI Sprint hackathon - co-hosting generative AI startup competition with Google Cloud platform credits provided to winners. Also provides cloud infrastructure support for portfolio companies.
• 창업자 네트워크 (Founder Network)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 November 202350+ former founders including Brian Yoo (former Moloco COO), 박정신 (Nudge Healthcare CEO), 박홍민 (Pinda CEO), 이동건 (MyRealTrip CEO), 최윤호 (Boosters CEO) provide 1:1 mentoring and peer learning.
• TIPS (Tech Incubator Program for Startups)coreOthersMashup Ventures operates TIPS program providing R&D funding up to 1.5 billion KRW (deep-tech track) or 800 million KRW (general track). Has supported 86+ team selections with 100% selection rate.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• FuturePlay: Korean early-stage deep-tech and AI investor. Closely comparable as a co-investor in QSTEM seed alongside Mashup Ventures, with overlapping deep-tech and AI thesis.
• BonAngels: Korean early-stage seed-to-Series A VC investing in IT, mobile, and platform startups. Highly comparable: Mashup Ventures' CIO Park Eunwoo was BonAngels' first analyst and BonAngels is a co-investor in the same Korean early-stage deal ecosystem.
• Kakao Ventures: Korea's leading CVC affiliated with Kakao, focused on seed-to-Series A investments in mobile, AI, and platform startups. Directly comparable as a frequent co-investor alongside Mashup Ventures (e.g., Taming Lab round).
• NAVER D2SF: NAVER's corporate venture arm investing in early-stage AI, robotics, and commerce startups. Closely comparable CVC peer that co-invests with Mashup Ventures in deals such as Khameleon.
• Sazze VC: Korean early-stage VC focused on consumer, marketplace, and SaaS startups. Directly comparable: co-invested with Mashup Ventures in Seoul Beauty Club pre-seed and operates in the same Korean seed-stage ecosystem.
• Strong Ventures: Early-stage VC focused on US-Korea cross-border investments, with active AI and commerce thesis. Directly comparable as co-investor in KZONE Series A and other deals where Mashup Ventures participated.
• The Ventures: Korean seed-to-Series A VC investing in AI, fintech, and consumer startups. Directly comparable peer that co-invested with Mashup Ventures in Khameleon and Seoul Beauty Club rounds.

Broad incumbents

• 500 Global: Global early-stage accelerator and VC with significant Korean operations and AI focus. Comparable as a larger-scale global peer co-investing alongside Mashup Ventures in Morph Systems and other regional rounds.

Emerging players

• Primer (Primer Accelerator): Seoul-based accelerator founded by Mashup Ventures' CEO Taekkyung Lee. Strongly relevant as the founder's prior vehicle — represents the same thesis applied at accelerator scale.

Regional players

• Collaborative Fund: Global thesis-driven VC with strong Korean/Asian deal participation. Comparable as a global peer co-investing with Mashup Ventures in Seoul Beauty Club and operating in adjacent Korean seed rounds.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mashupventures

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments181 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mashup Ventures