[Weekly Startup Trends] Rebellions Recruits Former Saudi Ambassador as MENA Advisor, MakinaRocks Applies AI to Auto Parts Testing, Ellys Group Selected for AI Data Center Project

AI semiconductor startup Rebellions has bolstered its Middle East and North Africa (MENA) strategy by appointing Moon Byung-joon, former deputy ambassador to Saudi Arabia, as its new MENA strategy advisor. Moon, a seasoned diplomat with 30 years of experience in Middle Eastern affairs, has previously supported Korean startups' expansion into the region while serving in various diplomatic roles, including as Minister-Counselor at the Embassy in Egypt and Consul General in Dubai. Rebellions, which established a subsidiary in Saudi Arabia last year, aims to accelerate regional partnerships and explore strategic collaborations through this appointment.

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Currently, in the Middle East, securing AI infrastructure leadership is the key topic beyond AI adoption, and securing the supply chain and core technologies are emerging as major tasks. I will prove the potential of Korea's AI semiconductor technology on the global stage with Rebellions, focusing on inference-specialized AI semiconductors.

In the automotive sector, industrial physical AI company MakinaRocks has partnered with Denso Korea, a global automotive parts manufacturer. MakinaRocks is implementing its AI vision-based anomaly detection technology into Denso Korea's testing process for automotive electronic components. This collaboration focuses on automating the detection of transient anomalies during rigorous testing cycles, such as voltage fluctuations and vibrations, which previously required significant manual oversight and time. The AI system aims to automatically record anomaly points and conditions, facilitating easier reproduction and root cause analysis, ultimately contributing to improved component quality.

Meanwhile, Ellys Group has been selected as a supplier for the '2026 National AI Data Center Advancement Project' in Gwangju, organized by the Gwangju AI Industry Convergence Business Group (AICA). Ellys Group will provide high-performance GPU cloud infrastructure, including NVIDIA H100 and B200 GPUs, along with InfiniBand-based HPC environments. The project aims to enhance national AI industry competitiveness by offering advanced AI computing resources to domestic companies, institutions, and universities. Ellys Group will also leverage its proprietary modular AI data center technology and provide integrated infrastructure operation support.

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The automotive electronic component testing process has high quality standards and a great demand for automation, but the field conditions are challenging, making AI application difficult. Based on the practical needs of the field confirmed through collaboration with Denso Korea, we aim to expand the scope of test automation together.

Additionally, senior care total care company Care닥 has launched 'CareOps,' an operating system specifically designed for senior living facilities. Developed by its subsidiary Care Operations, CareOps is an all-in-one platform that integrates various management aspects, including application and contract management, resident health monitoring, daily life support, community management, communication with guardians, and facility maintenance. A key feature is AIoT-based health management, which uses smartwatches and biosensors to monitor residents' health 24/7, detecting early signs of health issues or fall risks.

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As AICA's national AI data center serves as shared infrastructure for the domestic AI ecosystem, securing a stable GPU cloud foundation is crucial. We will contribute to the advancement of domestic AI infrastructure by reducing research and development environment constraints through verified GPU cloud infrastructure.