SK D&D, Yanolja Cloud set up joint proptech business venture

SK D&D CEO Kim Do-hyun, center, speaks during a press conference at Episode Gangnam 262 in Seoul, Tuesday. From left are Yanolja Cloud CEO Kim Jong-yoon, Kim and KMS CEO Suh Dong-rok. Courtesy of SK D&D

By Park Jae-hyuk

SK D&D, a real estate developer, and Yanolja Cloud, an artificial intelligence (AI) based software-as-a-service company, announced on Tuesday that they established a joint venture named Connectfy Cloud, in order to create a proptech business. Proptech, a portmanteau of the words “property” and “technology,” refers to the application of information technology and platform economics for the real estate industry.

During Tuesday's press conference, SK D&D and Yanolja Cloud unveiled their plan to utilize the joint venture to connect cleaning, laundry, maintenance and interior design services with the residential and commercial spaces, which the two companies manage, based on cloud computing technology.

Connectfy Cloud will therefore allow providers of such services and their customers to enhance efficiency, while saving them time and cost, according to the two companies.

In addition, the two companies and SK Discovery, the parent of SK D&D, will create a fund to foster the domestic proptech ecosystem by supporting the service providers, as well as various startups in the industry.

SK D&D and Yanolja Cloud will also jointly manage the nation's largest real estate big data company, KMS, to develop systems for proptech and expand their presence in the global market.

“In line with the introduction of innovative AI technologies such as ChatGPT and the digital transformation of residential and commercial spaces, there has been a growing necessity for connection between spaces and services,” Yanolja Cloud CEO Kim Jong-yoon said. “Through the cooperation, we will create a sustainable proptech ecosystem, while collaborating with small merchants and startups.”

SK D&D CEO Kim Do-hyun said he expects his company's data on customers using spaces it manages and Yanolja Cloud's know-how of developing software to create a synergistic effect that positively impacts the market.