"It connects both inside and outside the hospital using AI (Artificial Intelligence). Our goal is to be the world's No. 1 in the 'Omni-Care' AI platform."
Kim Gwang-jun, AITRICS, recently spoke with MoneyToday at the company's new headquarters in Seoul Gangnam-gu, stating as much regarding the company's future vision. Kim, a practicing physician (Severance Hospital Noh Nyeon-nae-gwa (Prof.)) and founder of AITRICS, presented "Omni-Care, Powered by AI" as a new challenge to mark the 10th anniversary of its establishment. It is a comprehensive AI management system that extends beyond the examination room, where doctors and patients have at most only two or three minutes together, to connect with "patients outside the hospital."
AITRICS reached a major turning point this year. In line with business and organizational growth, the company relocated its headquarters, expanded overseas expansion routes centered on Southeast Asia, and is challenging domestic listing while preparing for a leap into the "next 10 years." Kim emphasized, "We plan to build Omni-Care through Healthcare AI Transformation (HAX) across the entire healthcare sector," adding, "Our goal is to be No. 1 in Asia in this field by 2030, and then No. 1 in the world thereafter."
The following is a Q&A with Kim.
-Looking back on the past 10 years.
▶There were three major "jump-ups." From 2017 to 2019, after the company's establishment, the direction of research and development became concrete. From late 2019 to 2023, prototype release and actual commercialization were achieved. And from 2024 to this year has been a period of full-fledged growth. Even after breaking through the product approval hurdles, the process of applying it in hospitals was not smooth. It was also not easy to internally compromise on the timing of product release and advancement. After overcoming such difficulties, the number of hospitals using our products steadily increased, and the company seems to have grown step by step. The biggest change was that medical professionals who had been resistant to AI shifted their perception in the direction of needing to use it.
-The meaning of Omni-Care, presented as a new challenge.
▶It is a concept that supports caring for patients continuously, in a connected state, and comprehensively through an AI platform. As a physician working in the clinical field, I have often seen patients whose condition worsened after discharge or transfer to a nursing hospital, leading to readmission. Omni-Care started from the problem awareness that once a patient leaves my hands, there is no way to see how they are spending their daily life. For the medical system to function properly, ultimately, even the patient's daily life, such as exercise, diet, and sleep, must be managed. Since human doctors cannot do this, I believed that an AI-based "integrated management network" connecting inside and outside the hospital was necessary.
-The tasks required to realize Omni-Care.
▶A platform connecting hospitals and patients is most important. AITRICS expanded its portfolio by launching "Vital Care," a solution for predicting acute severe situations in hospitals, "V.Doc," a patient-facing solution for checking health status in daily life, and "V.Doc Pro" for medical staff to connect these with the hospital. Since the end of last year, it has been building a "many-to-many" data platform connecting AI software suppliers and domestic and overseas hospitals. It plans to grow into a specialized enterprise for platform services for smart hospitals through HAX-based Omni-Care.
-How far along are projects related to the HAX platform?
▶Currently, procedures for applying the platform are underway at two university hospitals and two general hospitals. We plan to complete platform installation and service launch by the end of this year, accumulate experience references by February next year, and then officially launch the platform service in March of that year at the International Medical Equipment & Hospital Facilities Exhibition (KIMES 2027).
-Expanding overseas expansion routes centered on the Southeast Asian market.
▶Southeast Asia, which has relatively low cost burdens, is a market where revenue can be generated in the short term. Revenue is already being generated in Vietnam, and we judge that the profit model can be expanded to Indonesia, Malaysia, and others. We also view it as a testbed for AX platform services and an easy and fast path to fully launch the business.
-Also pushing for entry into large markets such as the U.S. and Japan.
▶In the case of the U.S., Vital Care received FDA (Food and Drug Administration) pre-market approval (510(k)) in 2024, but at the time, we judged that funds and internal capabilities were insufficient and postponed entry for three years. Currently, preparations are underway with the goal of entering next year. In Japan, after several years of market research and promotion, proposals to introduce products such as V.Doc have come from local medical institutional investors. We are also advancing local approval procedures using Yokohama Hospital, which we are collaborating with, as a reference site. We expect to obtain it around next year.
-Challenging IPO (initial public offering) and potentially facing listing as early as next year. How do you view market concerns about the profitability of medical AI companies?
▶Listing is ultimately part of the process for the company to move forward. We believe it will play a major role in overseas expansion, clinical research, and collaboration with excellent medical institutional investors. We are fully aware of market concerns regarding the industry as a whole. From the company's perspective, it is true that the current external environment is difficult, but what is important is to consider what we can do better rather than complaining about it. We will continue to strive to provide the "best AI" needed for smart hospitals.
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