Eyes Entertainment Raises 20 Billion Won From Kakao Games, Krafton

Eyes Entertainment, the startup led by former Kakao CEO Namkoong Hoon, has secured a strategic investment of 20 billion won (about 14 million US dollars) from Kakao Games and Krafton. Each company contributed 10 billion won. Together with the 16 billion won seed round the startup raised in 2024, its total funding now stands at 36 billion won.

A messenger built around AI and games

The company is developing a platform that combines an AI chatbot, games and a messenger. Inside the app, users chat with AI chatbots, make choices that shape the story and play games. They can also use their own avatars to connect with other users who share similar interests.

The idea is a messenger where people and AI together form a friend network. Eyes Entertainment pitches the experience as one in which the conversation itself is the content.

Funding and rollout

The new capital will go toward polishing the chatbot-game messenger, launching the service and acquiring users. The company plans to release it first in Japan and then roll it out in South Korea in stages. Eyes Entertainment also said it will explore business cooperation with Kakao Games and Krafton at home and abroad.

Kakao Games CEO Kim Tae-hwan said the startup has the capability to deliver a commercial AI service, drawing on its experience in messaging, games and content. Krafton CEO Kim Chang-han said he hopes combining games and conversation will lead to a new kind of user experience in the AI era.

Namkoong said the company would repay the trust of its two backers with results and show what an AI-era messenger can offer when conversation itself is something people enjoy.

The backing from two of South Korea's biggest game publishers signals strong interest in AI-driven social products that sit between messaging and entertainment. The Japan-first launch will be the first real test of whether users embrace the format.