What Macromill Embrain does

Macromill Embrain is a Seoul-headquartered market research and data technology firm founded in 1998, operating as the Korean subsidiary of Japan's Macromill Group and listed on KOSDAQ in July 2020 as the first publicly listed company in Korea's domestic research industry. The company's foundation is Korea's largest online consumer research panel, which grew from 1.3 million members at the time of IPO to over 1.5 million by 2021, with a dedicated subset of 20,000 panelists contributing actual purchase receipt data across food, beverage, alcohol, household goods, cosmetics, dining, and delivery app categories. Around this panel it has built a layered product portfolio: traditional custom research and public-opinion polling services, the EZSurvey self-serve platform, two proprietary 'Deep Data' products (DD.B Purchase Deep Data launched 2022 and DD.P Panel Deep Data launched 2019), the ALPS big-data lifestyle platform, the Trend Monitor consumer-trend content brand, MindMagnet marketing consulting, and an Embrain Public subsidiary for government and social-sector work.

The technology stack is purpose-built: in-house automation systems (ISAS, FMS, MSAS) handle survey design, field management, and mobile research, complemented by a 2023-patented QR code survey support system. AI capabilities added since 2022 span an AI Training Data service (text/video/image labeling), an LLM Training Center supporting model training on LLaMA/ChatGPT/BERT architectures, and a custom Chatbot Service that ingests PDF, HWP, and Word documents with vector database embedding, delivered in partnership with Post AI. The company explicitly operates as a data technology provider, branding itself 'Beyond big, Deep data'.

Revenue is generated through a mix of professional services (custom research and MindMagnet consulting), subscription and recurring data products (DD.B, DD.P, Trend Monitor), self-serve platform access (EZSurvey Enterprise, EZSurvey Academy), and data-monetization streams (AI training data, chatbot services, LLM training center). Distribution is multi-channel: direct enterprise field sales, self-serve online, the Embrain Public subsidiary for government, and the Macromill Group network spanning Korea, Japan, China, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam (six countries, 20 networks). The customer base is horizontally segmented across enterprise corporations, startups/SMBs, government, and academic/research institutions, with 900+ enterprise clients and 4,000+ projects delivered annually.

Name

Macromill Embrain

Legal name

(주)마크로밀 엠브레인

Website

https://embrain.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Macromill Embrain is a Seoul-based KOSDAQ-listed market research and data technology firm operating Korea's largest 1.5 million-member online consumer panel. It delivers custom research, Deep Data products, AI training datasets, and LLM/chatbot services to enterprise, government, SMB, and academic clients as a subsidiary of Japan's Macromill Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Market Research and Consumer Data Analytics

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910), Marketing Consulting Services (541613), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (54191)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Advertising, Marketing & Customer Personalization (HDAAAGAC)

Keywords

• Market research services
• Consumer panel data
• Purchase behavior analytics
• Online survey platform
• AI training data

Headquarters

HQ city

Gangneung

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Marketing Research Services: Customized research services for corporate decision-making including marketing research, public opinion polling, and academic research. Provides tailored survey design, execution, and analysis.
2. Data Services (DD.B, DD.P): Sale of deep data products including purchase behavior data and panel behavioral data for consumer trends analysis and strategic decision-making.
3. EZSurvey Platform: Self-service DIY online research platform with automated analysis for rapid, affordable market research.
4. AI Data Services: AI training data collection and processing services using panel members, including chatbot services and LLM training center.
5. Trend Monitor Content: Consumer trend reports and specialized statistics sold to enterprises and research institutions.
6. Marketing Consulting (MindMagnet): Brand and marketing strategy consulting with integrated marketing campaigns from data analysis through distribution.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Macromill Embrain provides customized market research, consumer data analytics, and AI training data services powered by Korea's largest online consumer panel of 1.5 million+ members. Core offerings include Purchase Deep Data (DD.B) from actual consumer receipts, Panel Deep Data (DD.P) combining survey results with behavioral data, AI training data collection, LLM training center, chatbot services, and integrated marketing consulting through MindMagnet.

Product overview

Macromill Embrain offers a comprehensive portfolio of research and data technology products, consisting of core data services (DD.B Purchase Deep Data, DD.P Panel Deep Data), AI services (AI Training Data, LLM Training Center, Chatbot Service), and survey platforms (EasySurvey). The ecosystem is supported by consulting brands (MindMagnet for brand/marketing strategy, Marketing Communication for ad campaigns) and content platforms (Trend Monitor for consumer trends, ALPS for lifestyle data). Embrain Public handles the public/social sector research, while EasySurvey provides accessible DIY survey capabilities. All services leverage Korea's largest research panel network with 150+ million registered panelists, enabling deep data analytics, predictive insights, and AI-powered solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EZSurvey (이지서베이): Automated analysis solution for fast and cost-effective survey services
• DD.P (패널딥데이터)
• DD.B (구매딥데이터)
• ALPS
• MindMagnet (마인드매그넛)
• Panel Power (패널파워)
• Trend Monitor (트렌드모니터)
• Ch.엠브레인

Products and services

• DD.B Purchase Deep Data (구매딥데이터) Data service that analyzes consumer purchasing behavior and trends based on actual purchase receipt data from Korea's largest 20,000 consumer panel, covering categories including food, beverages, alcohol, household goods, cosmetics, dining, and delivery apps. For corporate strategy and marketing decisions.
• DD.P Panel Deep Data (패널딥데이터) Data service combining research survey results with consumer online/offline behavior information and profile data for multi-dimensional analysis of consumer perception and actions.
• EasySurvey (이지서베이) Automated survey analysis solution providing fast and cost-effective survey services by leveraging Korea's largest online panel and systematic survey system with automated analysis capabilities. For businesses and individuals needing self-serve market research.
• AI Training Data (인공지능 학습용 데이터) AI training data collection and processing service using Embrain's panel network to gather text, video, and image data with labeling for AI model development.
• LLM Training Center (LLM트레이닝 센터) Platform enabling users to build AI models including language models using desired AI models (LLaMA, ChatGPT, BERT) with training datasets and language resources.
• Chatbot Service (챗봇 서비스)

Quantifiable outcome

• 17% revenue CAGR over 3 years leading to KOSDAQ IPO
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Post AIcoreTechnology or IntegrationPost AI is a human-centered AI technology company providing AI modeling and data processing platforms. They develop commercial services using Embrain's panel data and work together on chatbot services and LLM training center platforms. Embrain provides panel data and AI training data services while Post AI provides the AI technology infrastructure.
• Macromill GroupcoreOthersMacromill Group is a global company with networks in Korea, Japan, China, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam (6 countries, 20 networks). Embrain is a member of this global network, providing access to international research capabilities and cross-border market insights.
• eolEmbrain (Taiwan)minorOthersSubsidiary established in Taiwan for research panel operations, expanding Embrain's presence in East Asian markets.
• MindMagnetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMindMagnet is Embrain's marketing consulting subsidiary that leverages Embrain's panel data to discover and predict consumer behaviors and needs. They provide integrated marketing consulting from brand strategy to execution, including data-driven advertising campaigns, retail marketing, and brand incubation.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Toluna: Global digital consumer panel and research technology provider. Competes head-to-head with Embrain's online panel and automated survey capabilities, particularly for cross-border studies and self-serve research buyers seeking large, pre-recruited consumer samples.
• Dynata: Large global first-party data and panel provider serving enterprise market research. Direct comparable on online panel-based research, B2B sampling, and data-as-a-service offerings, often competing for the same enterprise research buyers in APAC.

Broad incumbents

• Gallup: Global analytics and advisory firm with strong brand tracking, public opinion, and workplace research practices. Comparable to Embrain's public opinion research (Embrain Public) and brand strategy consulting work, especially for government, public-sector, and large multinational clients.
• Kantar: Major global insights firm with deep consumer panel and brand research offerings. Comparable to Embrain on enterprise market research, consumer behavior studies, and category-level purchase analytics; competes for the same Korean multinational brand clients.
• Ipsos: Global market research and consumer insights firm with strong APAC presence. Comparable on the marketing research, brand tracking, and public opinion polling services that anchor Embrain's core project-based business, with overlapping clients and similar custom-study workflows.
• NielsenIQ: Global leader in consumer measurement and retail panel data. Directly comparable as a large-scale consumer panel operator selling purchase-behavior and media insights to CPG and retail clients, overlapping most directly with Embrain's DD.B and DD.P products in concept (though NielsenIQ operates at vastly larger scale and global reach).
• Macromill (Japan): Parent company of Macromill Embrain and a Japan-headquartered market research conglomerate with operations across 6 Asian countries. Directly comparable as a research services firm operating panels and consumer insights businesses; structurally a parent but functionally a peer in market research delivery.

Regional players

• MetrixLab: Sister company under Macromill Group covering Americas and Europe. Offers digital market research and brand tracking; comparable to Embrain on research methodology and technology stack but operates in different geographies, reducing direct customer overlap while sharing data and tooling infrastructure.

Emerging players

• SurveyMonkey: DIY survey platform with a large consumer panel and self-serve research tooling. Comparable to EZSurvey as an alternative for SMBs and academic users running their own studies, with overlap in target buyer profile and pricing pressure on the lower end.
• Qualtrics: Enterprise experience management and research platform with strong DIY survey, panel, and analytics capabilities. Comparable to Embrain's enterprise research and analytics offerings, particularly for large corporations seeking in-house research automation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@trendjoob

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Macromill Embrain