Deep learning SaaS provider Z.Ai wins at D.Camp pitch competition

Deep learning-based Software as a Service (SaaS) provider Z.Ai Inc. won the September pitch competition hosted by Seoul-based startup accelerator D.Camp on Thursday.

The Banks Foundation for Young Entrepreneurs operates two incubator hubs known as D.Camp and Front1. The former was established in 2013 and the latter in 2020. 

A total of five startups made the cut to pitch to venture capital firms and individual investors at the monthly pitching event dubbed D.Day. All five startups were founded less than two years ago and are in Seed or Pre-A funding rounds. 

Z.Ai provides its artificial intelligence Z.Ai as a SaaS, to assist entrepreneurs in the fashion, content, and retail sectors that wish to collect customer data and analyze the patterns. 

The end goal is to help the users curate their products based on customer preferences and needs.

While data mining is important for platform businesses in accurately predicting the users’ demand and future needs, building machine learning-based solutions require high cost and developer resources. 

Z.Ai CEO Lee Ji-hyuk explained the company's monthly subscription-based service can cut a client’s cost by 70% when compared to a firm developing its own data analytics solutions. 

This month’s D.Day event is scheduled for Oct. 15 at Yonsei University in Seoul.

Write to Jee Abbey Lee at jal@hankyung.com