Naver CEO Outlines AI Strategy, Claims Third Global AI Model Position

Paris, France—Naver CEO Sooyeon Choi outlined the company's digital ecosystem strategy at the AI Action Summit, highlighting its position as the third company globally to develop a hyperscale AI model.

At the summit, Choi described how Naver established its market presence as a search engine 25 years ago and successfully defended its domestic search market position without government intervention. 

Since then, the company's services have expanded to encompass social media, commerce, fintech, content, and cloud services.

The CEO detailed Naver's approach to overcoming early challenges in Korean language digitalization. 

The company developed a user-driven question-and-answer service to address the initial scarcity of Korean digital documents compared to English content. 

This user-generated content was subsequently integrated into Naver's search functionality.

Naver's AI implementation focuses on enhancing user interactions across its platform. 

The company is developing AI-enabled search capabilities that comprehensively identify information and connect users with content aligned to their interests. 

Naver's AI systems analyze user intent and context in commerce to provide targeted product recommendations.

The company's AI initiatives extend to creator tools. 

Naver has implemented an AI Painter tool for creators on its Webtoon platform, allowing them to focus on essential creative work. 

The system also provides product display solutions for sellers.

Choi emphasized Naver's competitive advantage in combining fundamental AI technologies with large-scale services used by millions of users. 

The company's recent developments in high-performance AI model training suggest a potential for narrowing the technological gap with global technology companies.