[2025 University of Seoul Campus Town Startup CEO] ‘Metapet,’ Operator of the Personalized Pet Healthcare App ‘Meongsiljang’

SungYong Park, CEO of Metapet

Providing answers to pet owners’ questions 24 hours a day.
Answers to questions, home care solutions, and connection with nearby animal hospitals

Metapet is a pet healthcare company that operates the AI chatbot solution platform ‘Meongsiljang’ and the pet product brand ‘Niveus.’ It was founded in July 2022 by CEO SungYong Park (29).

It is represented by the AI chatbot solution ‘Meongsiljang’ and the pet product brand ‘Niveus.’ Meongsiljang’s slogan is ‘Worried about your pet? Ask Meongsiljang.’

“When people are sick, they can visit a doctor or specialist, but when pets are sick, they can’t go to the hospital on their own, or even tell their owner. Cats in particular tend to hide their pain, and if they don’t get treatment in time, small problems can grow into major health issues. Our solution to this problem is Meongsiljang, which answers pet owners’ questions 24 hours a day. In addition to these initial responses, we also provide home care solutions and even connect pet owners with nearby hospitals.”

Metapet is expanding abroad based on strong overseas partnerships. “South Korea only accounts for 1.6% of global GDP, and according to some research, its pet market is about 40 times smaller than that of the United States. This is precisely why we want to expand globally. We are working with Pettinne Corporation Co., Ltd., an animal telemedicine company based in Southeast Asia, to provide comprehensive, full life-cycle care for pets.”

The Meongsiljang service provides care before and after hospital visits, while Pettinee provides diagnoses, prescriptions, and medication deliveries through a telemedicine model in global markets outside of Korea. Together, they make full-cycle medical care possible. Pettinee CEO Dr. Tony is also an inside director of Metapet. This August, the two companies appeared together on the popular business audition program ‘Shark Tank Thailand,’ scheduled to be released on Netflix in the second half of the year. CEO Park said, “Based on this, we plan to expand our market by localizing the same business model in countries such as Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the United States.”

What made CEO Park decide to start a new company? “I first got my iPod Touch in 2010 when I was in middle school. Before that, if I wanted to use Naver, it took me a minute or two because I had to wait for the computer to boot and the browser to load. I was amazed that it took just three seconds with the iPod. I was curious about who could create such a great product, and that’s when I first learned about Steve Jobs. During my three years of high school, I read all the books about Steve Jobs that were published in Korea. I even purchased a few from overseas. I was inspired by his words when he created the Macintosh, ‘We’re here to put a dent in the universe.’ I wanted to be like him, so I decided to start a business.”

CEO Park’s mother, a strong supporter of the business, provided the initial funding. Since then, Metapet has grown with tangible and intangible support from various domestic support programs, such as the K-Unicorn Academy, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund’s NEST Program, and the University of Seoul Campus Town. In November 2024, the company secured seed investment from Pacer Partners. It’s now preparing to attract follow-up investment in the second half of this year or the first half of next year. This will be used to develop an independent LLM model and open up new sales channels.

Following the launch of the startup, said CEO Park, “I often feel that life rarely goes as planned,” and added, “I’ve experienced more failures than successes, but gradually adjusted my direction. I feel rewarded when I hear from pet owners and animal hospitals that our solution has been of great help.”

Metapet’s core members include CEO Park and inside director PHONGKITTIRAK PUNNAWAT (Tony). CEO Park is in charge of service development, business planning, and domestic marketing and sales. Tony is a Thai veterinarian and the CEO of ‘Pettinee,’ a pet telemedicine startup serving the Southeast Asian market. He is is in charge of non-face-to-face treatment, online consultations, veterinary medicine, and overseas marketing and sales.

Regarding future plans, CEO Park said, “I want to be recognized as a competitive Korean startup in the global pet industry through K-pet healthcare,” and added, “To achieve this, I’ll create a process that will allow all pets in the world to receive appropriate care when they need it.”

Date of Establishment: July 2022
Main Business: The pet healthcare platform ‘Meongsiljang’ and the pet product brand ‘Niveus’
Performance. Appeared on Shark Tank Thailand in 2025, selected for the 17th Deep Tech Special Selection of the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund NEST in 2025, tenant company of the University of Seoul Campus Town in 2025, attracted seed investment from ‘Pacer Partners’ in 2024, graduated from the 14th class of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ K-Unicorn Academy in 2024, and selected for the Ministry of Science and ICT’s I-Corps in 2022

reporter jinho lee
jinho2323@hankyung.com