Kakao to launch new AI service with OpenAI this year
Kakao Corp. on Thursday said it plans to launch a new AI-powered service with ChatGPT operator OpenAI later this year, as the Korean messenger giant ramps up its AI push through partnerships to stay ahead in the competitive landscape.
During the company's earnings call for the October-December 2024 period, Kakao CEO Chung Shin-a outlined the company's goals and its blueprint for artificial intelligence, including its recently announced high-profile partnership with OpenAI.
'The strategic partnership with OpenAI is not just limited to model-related collaborations, but also includes joint service development between the two companies,' Chung told investors.
She emphasized that the firms' mission is to popularize AI, enabling South Korean users to incorporate the technology into their daily lives.
Under this mission, the two firms plan to roll out an AI agent that will go beyond the simple question and answer functions and perform highly-personalized and complex tasks across various services.
'We will do our best for users to experience this service within this year,' said Chung, without elaborating on the timing.
In addition, Chung said Kakao's new conversational AI service, Kanana, has completed in-house beta tests and is currently working on the final touches to improve functions based on user feedback.
She added that Kanana will be open for public beta testing in the first half of this year. The new service will enable multiple users to interact with the AI, such as in group chat settings.
Furthermore, Kakao aims to enhance its search capabilities by integrating generative AI across its services.
On Thursday, Kakao reported consolidated revenue of 1.95 trillion won for the October-December period last year, down 2 percent on-year. Its operating profit declined 33.7 percent on-year to 106.7 billion won.
The company attributed the decline partly to a one-time bad debt expense incurred by its payment subsidiary, Kakao Pay, due to the Tmon incident. The e-commerce platform failed to pay vendors due to a liquidity crisis, forcing Kakao to make refunds to users.
A decrease in revenue from its content businesses, including the music, game and story units, also weighed on the firm's overall earnings.
As for 2024 overall, Kakao reported an annual revenue of 7.87 trillion won, up 4.2 percent from 2023. Its operating profit increased 6.6 percent on-year to 491.5 billion won.
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