LG CNS partners with General Atlantic to co-invest in global software, AI firms

LG CNS has teamed up with global investment firm General Atlantic to pursue joint investments in software and AI companies, aiming to secure software assets with intellectual property rights and build a recurring revenue base through licensing and subscription models.

LG CNS announced Thursday that it signed a co-investment partnership agreement at General Atlantic's headquarters in New York on Sept. 24 (local time).

The signing ceremony was attended by LG CNS President Hyun Shin-kyun and General Atlantic Co-President and Global Growth Equity Head Martin Escobari, among others.

The two companies will jointly identify enterprise technology firms in the software and AI sectors and evaluate investment opportunities. Specific investment amounts and terms will be disclosed on a case-by-case basis once target companies are confirmed.

Enterprise technology refers to software and AI solutions that support core operations in industries such as manufacturing, finance, logistics and energy. LG CNS plans to expand its business portfolio by adding enterprise software to its existing IT services and AI transformation, or AX, operations.

General Atlantic is a global investment firm with $130 billion in assets under management as of late June. Headquartered in New York, it employs more than 900 people across 20 countries.

LG CNS plans to combine its own AX capabilities with General Atlantic's investment expertise to identify global enterprise technology companies. It intends to link acquired software technologies and customer bases with its existing IT services and AX businesses to expand in global markets.

The company will focus particularly on securing software assets with intellectual property to strengthen a stable revenue base through licensing and subscriptions. It also plans to extend its customer reach from North America into the Asia-Pacific region.

The spread of agentic AI was cited as another factor raising the strategic value of enterprise software. For AI to make decisions and carry out tasks using a company's internal operations and data, it must be integrated with the enterprise software systems that manage those core processes and data, the company said.

"Proactively securing enterprise software that handles a company's core operations and data will be an important catalyst for building a foundation for future growth," LG CNS President Hyun said. "Together with General Atlantic, we will secure the core business foundation and combine it with LG CNS's AX capabilities."

Meanwhile, LG CNS has been broadening its overseas business base by deepening ties with global AI companies. In the first half of this year, it established partnerships with OpenAI, Palantir and Anthropic to pursue new customers, and has been expanding its financial digital transformation business, particularly in the Asia-Pacific and Japan region.