PinotLab Raises Awareness of Water, Transforming It into Value for Corporations and Consumers [Seoul AI Hub 2026]

Company Name : PinotLabCEO : Sungwon AhnYear of Establishment : 2021Investment Stage : Seed Key Product : Water Sommelier Industry : AI+Agriculture·Food TechTechnology : AI Application Technology / Recommendation Systems, Predictive·Analytical Modeling Website : www.pinotlab.comPinotLab leverages water data to provide curated services to the most relevant customers and channels.PinotLab's flagship solution is the "Water Sommelier" platform. / PinotLabWorld-Class Services Centered on Water Data PlatformPinotLab applies data analysis and visualization technologies to deliver services such as wine kiosks and financial data analysis. After being spun off from Samsung Electronics' C-Lab in June 2021, the company received KRW 500 million in seed funding.To date, it has filed eight patents, including two U.S. patents (one pending) and three registered trademarks, and targets both domestic and international mineral water production and distribution companies. To collaborate with global organizations specializing in water, it has signed MOUs with Zavod operated by the European Water Sommelier Association (EWSA) and Purelogica operated by the chairman of the Chinese Water Sommelier Association.The company has built the largest water data service platform in the world, offering information on over 1,000 bottled water brands from 70 countries, and continues to update and expand it.The company maintains its position as a world-class water platform by continuously enhancing its water data service with detailed distribution and water quality information, along with curated recipes that use both water and other beverages such as coffee, tea, and cocktails, while fostering growth through collaborations with companies that rely on these insights.Its flagship solution is the "Water Sommelier" platform. This platform provides data on over 1,000 bottled water products from more than 60 countries, along with taste evaluations, water quality evaluation, and water-related content.The platform collects bottled water sales data and integrates it with its own quality evaluation standards to build a bottled water commerce analysis model. Based on this, the platform provides customized bottled water branding consulting for each distribution channel and customer. It goes beyond basic analysis data by using data analysis technology to create visual representations of key product attributes, including taste profiles, mineral composition, and storytelling. The results analyzed by generative AI are converted into natural language insights and provided by Software as a Service (SaaS). It is also developing an automated content generation service for product-related materials.The technical background involves using LLM technology to fine-tune refined data, employing Water Sommelier agent technology that produces content in the desired format. The bottled water sector is a traditional market that has been the slowest to adopt IT and AI technologies. Most of PinotLab's clients still operate within analog distribution and marketing. Now they are looking for ways to boost sales and enhance marketing impact. PinotLab uses its proprietary, world's-largest-scale water data and AI technologies to provide these clients with efficient marketing content and sales strategies. By leveraging IT capabilities unavailable to competitors and combining them with its unique water data, PinotLab delivers marketing strategies and consulting that drive sales growth, gaining positive feedback from clients and expanding its paid customer base.Having established a strong presence in the water sector, the company plans to expand into related F&B beverage markets. For example, in October 2024, the company collaborated with a tea brand to analyze differences in taste and aroma based on the type of water used for brewing and conducted a promotion selling bottled water and tea as a package. Going forward, it plans to broaden its offerings by providing bottled water recommendations tailored to coffee, tea, and cocktails, as well as water-taste comparisons and recipe content for business expansion. kimka@chosunbiz.comThis article was written in 2025 and reflects information available at the time of writing.