Even with the emergence of cheap copycats, there's 'no worry'... What is the source of confidence for ModusSign?

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"Electronic contracts must go beyond simply providing a signature function; they need to meet the stability of server and infrastructure operations and achieve top-tier security. The infrastructure stability and security technology capabilities accumulated over the past decade, along with a deep understanding of the domestic business environment, are factors that competitors cannot catch up on in a short period."

Lee Dong-ju, CTO (Chief Technology Officer) of ModusSign, stated this regarding ModusSign's technical strengths that allow it to maintain its undisputed No. 1 position with a 70% share of the domestic B2B electronic signature market.

Recently, the domestic electronic signature industry has seen intensifying competition, with global companies expanding their market presence and cheap 'copycat' products imitating ModusSign emerging.

CTO Lee Dong-ju said, "The biggest technical asset is over 50 million contract data records accumulated over 10 years and more than 330,000 corporate clients." He added, "Especially, data specialized for the Korean business environment is difficult for global competitors to replicate."

He explained, "Unlike in English-speaking countries, Korea handles various types of contracts across different departments such as finance and accounting. ModusSign is building a 'standard for Korean-style CLM (Contract Lifecycle Management)' based on this domestically specialized data."

Regarding the emergence of copycat products, he pointed out, "While it may be possible to replicate functions, creating a security system and infrastructure assets capable of safely managing and controlling vast amounts of contract data is an area that cannot be built in a short period."

ModusSign holds the most security certifications in the domestic electronic signature industry, including CSAP (Cloud Service Security Certification) and ISMS-P. It is described as possessing professional expertise at the level of security consulting trusted by large corporations and public institutional investors.

He stated, "Since contracts are directly linked to legal validity, post-management capabilities such as liability for damages in case of issues are extremely important." He added, "Solutions that approach the serious domain of contracts lightly based solely on functional aspects will find it difficult to gain market trust."

He continued, "The fact that over 10 million users have already experienced ModusSign and major companies such as Samsung Electronics, SK, and Kakao are using it itself becomes a powerful barrier to entry. The brand recognition of 'when you think electronic contracts, think ModusSign' is a key factor in enhancing trust within contractual relationships."

ModusSign offers not only cloud-based solutions but also on-premise (On-premise) methods that allow companies sensitive to security to control data within their internal networks, thereby accommodating customers requiring highly advanced security environments such as financial institutions and public institutional investors.

ModusSign announced its vision last year to leapfrog into an AI (Artificial Intelligence)-based CLM solution company on the occasion of its 10th anniversary. CTO Lee Dong-ju emphasized, "Vast contract data and a solid customer base serve as the foundation for rapidly realizing AI technology."

He said, "While electronic signatures have previously focused on digitizing the inconvenience of paper contracts, from now on we will transform contract data into a core operational asset for companies. We aim to create not just a simple document storage tool but a contract engine that accompanies all processes before and after signing."

The product embodying this vision is 'ModusSign Cabinet,' launched at the end of last year. This is an intelligent solution where AI automatically classifies contract titles, counterparties, dates, amounts, etc., and extracts key information.

This CTO explained, "The core lies in automating the past method of manually checking hundreds of files to find desired results within one minute." He added, "Customer satisfaction has noticeably increased simply because AI enables document search and question-and-answer capabilities."

ModusSign does not aim for AI to unilaterally judge whether a contract is right or wrong; instead, it pursues 'symbiotic AI' that assists contract managers in their judgments. This means serving as a 'data-based guide' by providing users with more data to enable them to make more correct decisions.

He gave an example: "Rather than definitively defining a specific clause as a 'poisonous clause,' we provide information such as 'it was written differently from common expressions, so caution is needed,' guiding users to pay attention themselves."

ModusSign's development organization operates under the philosophy of this CTO: 'Customer Centric' value. He stated, "We aim to increase productivity through AI and deliver more value to customers quickly, while keeping the final product quality and policy consistency under human responsibility and judgment."

Unlike 'vibe coding,' where everything is entrusted to AI, they pursue an 'agent-based software development' approach where specific parts of the development process are delegated to AI agents, but humans thoroughly verify them and determine priorities.

Through this, in the long term, they plan to further advance technology to the level of an 'autonomous contract AI agent' that can detect changes in laws and regulations, automatically indicate their impact on relevant contracts, and find and summarize contracts matching specific conditions.

Regarding technology development, the value CTO Lee is most mindful of is security. He said, "Given the nature of handling contract data, security is like a lifeline for ModusSign." He added, "We approach security not only as a technical measure but also as an issue of 'internal culture and attitude.'"

To maintain objectivity between development efficiency and security policies, the CTO does not concurrently hold the positions of CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) or CPO (Chief Product Officer); instead, these roles are separated and operated directly under the CEO. Additionally, surprise inspections are conducted monthly to check employees' security levels, thereby institutionalizing enterprise-wide security management.

He stated, "While existing electronic signatures focused on 'conclusion,' ModusSign aims to build an AI-based CLM covering the entire process of contract drafting, review, conclusion, storage, and execution." He added, "We hope that when companies, institutional investors, and individuals handle contracts, ModusSign will be the first name that comes to mind."

[MoneyToday startup media platform 'Unicorn Factory']