Digital biomarkers to reveal intractable disease earlier, paired with tailored nutrition solutions
“We want to catch the health signals of animals that cannot speak and close the loop with veterinary nutrition management”
LIMPID, an AI company built for animal health, announced on April 13 that it has been selected as the final lead research institution for the 2026 program on overcoming intractable diseases in companion animals, administered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.
The program was designed to meet rising demand for diagnosis and treatment of intractable disease as companion animals age. The project LIMPID leads is the development of a multimodal AI precision nutrition management platform for complex intractable diseases, and the selection secures up to KRW 5.1 billion in government research funding, the largest single award in the companion animal field.
As lead institution, LIMPID directs the overall research program in a consortium with Sookmyung Women's University College of Engineering, Kyungpook National University College of Veterinary Medicine, LV Veterinary Clinical Center, and the Korea Testing Certification Institute (KTC).
The core of the project is identifying digital biomarkers that combine AI video analysis with veterinary insight to reveal signs of disease earlier, and building precision nutrition solutions on top of them.
LIMPID will build a multimodal AI engine that jointly analyzes behavior video from AI pet cameras, audio, vision images, dietary data, and electronic medical records. Where existing pet cameras have focused on simple behavioral issues such as separation anxiety, this project brings in veterinarians across specialties to turn the early signs of four major chronic conditions - resting respiratory rate, changes in water intake and urine output (PU/PD), signs of pruritus, and sharp drops in activity - into digital biomarkers.
The result will be a tailored healthcare platform for animals living with complex intractable conditions including chronic kidney disease, pancreatitis, inflammatory bowel disease, cutaneous adverse food reactions, and urolithiasis. An algorithm that resolves conflicting nutritional requirements across coexisting conditions will support disease-targeted premix products, advancing a model for manufacturing therapeutic diets and supplements through precision nutrition.
Heesu Kim, CEO of LIMPID, said, “The heart of this research is having AI catch the health signals of an animal that cannot speak, and alert the owner, before the owner notices. We will complete a Detect, Alert, Respond, Repeat loop that carries digital biomarkers found early into tailored precision nutrition.”
LIMPID closed a KRW 1.4 billion Pre-A round last year and has completed FDA Food Facility Registration for its own freeze-drying facility in preparation for overseas markets. It plans to strengthen its global R&D capability further this year through Deep Tech TIPS and a Series A round.