OpenAI has announced a partnership with Kakao, South Korea’s leading chat app operator, to develop artificial intelligence (AI) products tailored for the market.
The announcement was made on Tuesday during OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s visit to South Korea as part of a broader tour across Asia.
The agreement marks OpenAI’s second major collaboration with an Asian firm in the same week.
Altman had earlier confirmed a partnership with Japan’s SoftBank Group, named SB OpenAI Japan, to provide AI services to corporate clients in Japan
Kakao to integrate OpenAI technology
Like SoftBank, Kakao intends to integrate OpenAI’s advanced AI models into its products. Kakao operates KakaoTalk, the dominant messaging platform in South Korea with a 97% domestic market share.
The company has also diversified into e-commerce, payments, and gaming. While Kakao has positioned AI as a key growth driver, analysts note that it has been trailing behind its local competitor, Naver, in the AI space.
At a press conference in Seoul, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman emphasized the connection between AI and messaging, stating their strong interest in the field.
“We are particularly interested in AI and messaging.”
- Altman also disclosed that several South Korean companies would play a significant role in OpenAI’s Stargate data centre project, a collaborative initiative with Oracle aimed at expanding AI capacity in the United States.
However, he refrained from providing further details, explaining, “We want to keep partnership conversations confidential.”
As part of his engagements in South Korea, Altman met with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won earlier on Tuesday.
He is also scheduled to hold discussions with Samsung Chairman Jay Y. Lee and SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son in Seoul later in the day, according to Maeil Business Newspaper.
Meanwhile, Son, who is exploring potential AI collaborations, told reporters on Tuesday that discussions with Samsung would cover Stargate updates and “potential cooperation.”
When asked whether he would seek Samsung’s investment in the project, Son stated, “Nothing specific,” adding that initial cooperation talks must take place first.
What you should know
In recent years, numerous companies across various sectors have increasingly integrated artificial intelligence (AI) into their operations to enhance efficiency, drive innovation, and maintain competitive advantage.
- Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce giant, utilizes AI to predict customer preferences and automatically generate product descriptions.
- Microsoft integrates AI into products like Cortana, Skype, Bing, and Office 365, enhancing user experiences with intelligent capabilities. The company is also a significant provider of AI as a Service (AIaaS), offering AI solutions to other businesses
- Amazon leverages AI for personalized product recommendations, optimizing logistics, and enhancing customer service. The company has also developed Amazon Go stores, which utilize AI technology to allow customers to shop without traditional checkouts, thereby streamlining the retail experience.
- Google employs AI across various applications, including search algorithms, image and speech recognition, and automated translations.
