KakaoTalk is finally testing typing indicators. For many Koreans, it just feels wrong

Korea Herald

7 hours ago

For 15 years, South Korea's iconic messaging app KakaoTalk thrived without a feature so basic that most of us never noticed it was missing until now.
Since its launch in 2010, KakaoTalk has uniquely dominated South Korean communication, standing apart from global giants like Apple and Meta. Rather than WhatsApp and iMessage, Koreans have always relied heavily on homegrown platforms, particularly KakaoTalk.
Yet, strangely enough, KakaoTalk never had a simple feature that was included in almost every other chat app or service worldwide: the typing indicator.
Then, in May, KakaoTalk introduced the feature on a trial basis.
It triggered a wave of strong reactions, most of them negative.
The company said the goal was to 'support uninterrupted communication and offer an experience closer to offline conversation.'
Many users labeled the update intrusive, anxiety-inducing, and unnecessarily transparent, while a minority welcomed it as a long overdue catch-up.
International observers, familiar with typing indicator features on apps like WhatsApp or iMessage, quickly attributed this controversy to Korea's cultural preference for subtlety and indirect communication. The reasoning goes something like this: As a "high-context society," Koreans naturally resist real-time transparency that might undermine the nuanced, indirect nature of their interactions.
However, the full story might be surprisingly more mundane. Rather than an intentional cultural decision, the initial absence of KakaoTalk's typing indicator likely resulted from practical, technical constraints.
At its founding in 2010, KakaoTalk operated on an extremely lean budget with no clear business model; founder Kim Beom-soo reportedly paid server costs from his own pocket, which reached as high as 1 billion won (around $900,000 at the time) per month.
This means that a typing indicator could have added a strain to Kakao's already overstretched resources.
'To be clear, this is just my speculation,' one former software engineer with experience in building smaller messaging services, who spoke anonymously, told The Korea Herald.
"But typing indicators aren't as simple to implement as they seem. They require continuous, real-time communication between devices. During Kakao's early years, even ensuring stable and reliable message delivery was challenging enough, making typing indicators understandably a low priority."
As KakaoTalk exploded in popularity and profitability over subsequent years, adding such a feature became more feasible. But by then, the company's attention had shifted to more commercially promising areas: emoticons, e-commerce integration, content offerings, and monetization strategies.
'During their explosive growth, it's pretty obvious that introducing a typing indicator wasn't exactly urgent or particularly lucrative, and so it might have remained shelved indefinitely,' the backend engineer said.
At the same time, the absence of a typing indicator gradually shaped the nature of communication on KakaoTalk. Koreans increasingly viewed its absence not as a limitation, but as a valuable asset.
Without the pressure of real-time typing notifications, users felt free to hesitate, reconsider, or rewrite messages without fear of judgment. Over time, this unintentional quiet space evolved into a cherished aspect of the app: aligning with local conversational norms.
Thus, KakaoTalk's recent introduction of the typing indicator, even as an optional trial feature, disrupted more than just app functionality. It breached an implicit, quietly nurtured social agreement.
"I use Slack and other apps with typing indicators all the time, and never even consciously thought about it," said Seo Ji-hyun, a 29-year-old human resources manager. "But on KakaoTalk, it somehow feels wrong. This app was one of the only places left where I could genuinely pause to think before replying."
Some fear deeper ramifications, particularly in workplaces. KakaoTalk isn't merely a social platform; it serves as Korea's primary professional communication tool for companies, schools, and government offices alike. The lack of clear boundaries between personal and professional use exacerbates anxieties.
"Supervisors might notice me typing something but not sending it, leading to unnecessary tension," worried one public school teacher in Seoul. "I don't want to have to explain why I rewrote a message."
Despite widespread criticism, a smaller group of users welcomes the update.
"I like seeing when someone is typing because at least I know they're not intentionally ignoring me," said Kim Do-yeon, a 22-year-old university student. "It's reassuring."
Ultimately, whether KakaoTalk permanently adopts the typing indicator will likely depend on internal usage data available exclusively to the company. For now, the typing indicator is optional and must be manually activated in the app's Lab settings.