Presight Takes Stake in South Korean AI City Platform Dtonic

Neither company has disclosed the amount invested or the size of the stake. Presight chief executive Thomas Pramotedham named Dtonic during the question-and-answer session of the company's third-quarter earnings call on November 12, describing it as a key company from the second cohort of Presight's global AI accelerator in which it had invested, according to the Korean outlet Mediapen. He said Presight was interested in Dtonic's technology and in using its own overseas network to help expand the Korean company's business, Mediapen reported.

The deal turns a technology partnership into a financial one. Dtonic was picked in July for the accelerator's second cohort, one of 12 companies chosen from 376 applicants in 62 countries, according to Korean press reports at the time. Companies in the programme are also considered for investment by Presight's own fund. After about two months of technical review, the two companies signed a strategic partnership in September covering AI city and smart nation projects, under which Dtonic's AI operating system technology is to be applied to Presight's existing projects.

Dtonic's main product, D.Hub, links large volumes of data with operational knowledge so that AI systems can assess situations and support tasks in cities, public institutions and industry. Mediapen described the company as a smart city business at the pre-IPO stage. Korean outlet eToday has reported that Dtonic began as an in-house venture at Hyundai Motor and is preparing for a listing on the Kosdaq.

For Presight, the stake fits a push to sell smart city and government analytics systems outside the UAE, including in Central Asia, Europe and Africa. The company reported a 31% rise in third-quarter profit this week and an order backlog of Dh4.41 billion, with almost all quarterly revenue coming from multi-year contracts.

Whether the investment pays off will depend on the two companies converting their partnership into signed contracts. Presight has not said whether it will disclose the terms.