Datumo Secures $15.5M to Advance Enterprise AI Safety Tools

Datumo, a South Korea-based artificial intelligence company, has raised $15.5 million in a recent funding round, bringing its total capital to $28 million. The investment, led by Salesforce Ventures, KB Investment, ACVC Partners, and SBI Investment, marks a strategic milestone for the firm as it shifts focus from AI data labeling to building tools for enterprise AI safety and evaluation [1]. This expansion aims to address the growing demand for explainable and trustworthy AI models, especially as generative AI becomes increasingly integrated into business operations.

The company's journey began in 2018 as a data labeling startup, co-founded by David Kim and other KAIST alumni. Datumo quickly established itself with pre-contract sales and revenue exceeding $1 million in its first year. Its client base includes major Korean enterprises such as Samsung, LG, Hyundai, Naver, and SK Telecom. However, as clients’ needs evolved beyond basic data annotation—seeking tools to evaluate and compare AI models—Datumo responded by pivoting to full-stack AI evaluation [1].

The firm’s shift is rooted in a growing industry challenge: the need for AI models to be transparent, safe, and accountable. A recent McKinsey report indicated that most organizations lack the readiness to safely implement generative AI, with 40% of respondents identifying explainability as a major risk. In response, Datumo has developed Datumo Eval, a no-code platform for AI model testing and evaluation. The tool automates the generation of test data and identifies unsafe, biased, or incorrect responses, reducing the need for technical expertise and manual scripting [1].

The AI safety space is increasingly competitive. Meta’s recent acquisition of data labeling firm Scale AI and OpenAI’s reported shift away from Scale services underscore the rapid evolution and high stakes in this sector. Datumo differentiates itself through its proprietary datasets, particularly those sourced from published books, which offer rich, human-structured reasoning but require significant cleaning [1].

The recent funding round, secured after CEO David Kim’s strategic outreach to AI leader Andrew Ng on LinkedIn, will fuel Datumo’s R&D efforts, especially in developing automated evaluation tools for enterprise AI. The company plans to scale its global operations in South Korea, Japan, and the U.S., leveraging its existing team of 150 in Seoul and a new office in Silicon Valley [1].

With generative AI adoption on the rise, Datumo is positioning itself at the forefront of a critical industry shift. By offering accessible, no-code evaluation tools and high-quality datasets, the company is helping enterprises build AI models with greater confidence and responsibility. As AI becomes more embedded in business and daily life, Datumo’s focus on safety and explainability addresses a central challenge highlighted by industry analysts and sets the stage for broader, more ethical AI adoption [1].

Source: [1] AI Safety: Datumo Secures $15.5M to Revolutionize AI Evaluation for Enterprises (https://coinmarketcap.com/community/articles/689a7ccb790b292b8ac6c038/)