South Korea’s tech giants deepen US ties in AI expansion

South Korean technology companies Naver and Kakao are enhancing collaborations with US firms to strengthen their roles in the global AI sector.

Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon and Webtoon Entertainment CEO Kim Jun-koo will meet Netflix executives in Silicon Valley this week, sparking speculation of new collaborations.

This follows their previous collaboration on a membership plan launched in November 2022.

Although past ties include Netflix’s ad-supported plan in Naver Plus, officials deny plans to bring Webtoon content to Netflix.

Naver also plans to launch a US-based investment arm, Naver Ventures, to fund AI startups and support the global expansion of Korean AI companies.

Meanwhile, Kakao is strengthening its collaboration with OpenAI.

The company recently introduced its gift shop service on OpenAI’s AI agent, Operator, and plans to launch a jointly developed AI product later this year.

Kakao CEO Chung Shin-a stated that the AI tool will offer more than just answers to queries.

🔗 Source: The Korea Times and https://www.techinasia.com/