Retail subscription closes with 546,153 individual applications, following record institutional demand

Investors cite Runway AI OS technology and proven deployments across manufacturing and defense as key growth drivers

IPO proceeds to fund R&D advancements and Japan market entry; KOSDAQ listing scheduled for May 20

SEOUL, South Korea, May 12, 2026 — MakinaRocks, South Korea’s leading Physical AI company, said Tuesday that its public offering drew a retail subscription ratio of 2,807.8-to-1, with a total of 1,849,631,580 shares applied for against a retail allocation of 658,750 shares. The two-day offering period of May 11 and 12 received 546,153 individual applications, generating approximately KRW 13.87 trillion — roughly USD 10.1 billion — in subscription deposits, the largest retail IPO deposit total in South Korea so far in 2026.

The retail result follows an equally strong institutional book-building period held April 28 to May 6, in which 2,427 domestic and international investors participated at a demand ratio of 1,196.1-to-1. Of those, 78.2 percent submitted voluntary lockup commitments of 15 days or longer — the highest rate in KOSDAQ IPO history. The final offering price was set at KRW 15,000 per share, the top of the indicative range.  

“Following the record institutional lockup rate in book-building, retail investors showed the same level of conviction,” said a representative from Mirae Asset Securities, the lead underwriter. “Investors took particular note of the technological strength of MakinaRocks’ AI operating system, Runway, and the company’s track record deploying it at major industrial conglomerates.” 

That track record is grounded in measurable outcomes. An automotive manufacturer using MakinaRocks’ AI for robotic path optimization reduced task completion time by 93 percent. A semiconductor and electronics company applied the technology to PCB component placement, cutting a 48-hour process down to four hours. 

MakinaRocks has since extended its manufacturing AI capabilities into defense — a natural adjacency — one where both environments demand high-performance AI operating under conditions of network isolation, high security, and unpredictable variables. Since entering the defense sector in 2025, the company has secured contracts with the Agency for Defense Development, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Hanwha Systems. Defense accounted for 22 percent of revenue in 2025. 

Anchored in manufacturing and defense, MakinaRocks continues to expand its AI applications across mission-critical industries, driving sustained revenue growth. The company’s revenue grew from KRW 3.2 billion in 2022 to KRW 11.5 billion in 2025, a compound annual growth rate of 53.5 percent. MakinaRocks was also named to CB Insights’ list of the world’s 100 most promising AI companies — the only manufacturing-focused firm to appear on the list. 

Proceeds from the offering will be directed toward R&D and international expansion. On the product side, the company plans to advance industry-specific variants of its Runway AI OS platform, including a Defense OS and a Dark Factory OS, accelerate the deployment of agentic AI in operational environments, and consolidate its R&D capabilities around integrated industrial and defense validation. 

For its international push, MakinaRocks has identified Japan as its primary overseas market — a manufacturing economy roughly twice the size of South Korea’s, estimated at USD 860 billion. The company established a Japanese subsidiary in April 2025 and has since secured four large-scale customers in the automotive and industrial machinery sectors, each with annual revenues exceeding KRW 1 trillion. 

“We are deeply grateful to the investors who believed in MakinaRocks’ potential,” said Andre S. Yoon, CEO of MakinaRocks. “We will build on South Korea’s world-class manufacturing competitiveness, deploy AI that performs in the most demanding and unpredictable industrial environments, and grow into a Physical AI company that leads the global market.” 

MakinaRocks is scheduled to complete payment on May 14 and list on the KOSDAQ exchange on May 20, 2026.