Kakao AI Synergy TF Vice President Kim Se-woong, left, poses with members of Kanana Scholar's expert advisory group during the group's inaugural meeting at Kakao AI Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, Friday. Courtesy of Kakao
Kakao has launched Kanana Scholar, an artificial intelligence (AI) initiative designed to foster collaboration with scholars and emerging experts, forming an advisory group of leading researchers.
The company announced Monday that it held an inaugural meeting for the expert advisory group on Friday to outline the group’s advisory direction and set the agenda for the year.
The initiative aims to create a platform to jointly discuss and develop Kakao’s AI strategy and technology with the academic community, running an expert advisory group of academic researchers and an outreach program targeting university students and young people.
The advisory group consists of seven professors specializing in AI and computing from major Korean universities, including KAIST, Seoul National University and Yonsei University, who will provide guidance on the company’s AI technologies and services across its portfolio.
“We expect to refine Kakao’s AI strengths and strategic direction even further through maintaining continuous discussions with Korea’s top AI and ICT experts,” the company’s official said. “We’ll continue expanding academic partnerships to explore new pathways for advancing AI technologies and services.”
The group will continue discussions centering on the company’s key AI technologies and service strategies, including its Kanana foundation model, on-device AI, agentic AI and AI safety, with plans for ongoing collaboration throughout the year.
Through regular engagement with the group, Kakao said it aims to sharpen its AI execution strategy while gaining broader insights into evolving technologies and industry trends.
The professors who joined the inaugural event emphasized that the rapid expansion of AI across services and platforms has narrowed the boundary between corporate agendas and academic research. They expressed hope that the Kanana Scholar advisory program will serve as a foundation for more meaningful collaboration between academia and industry.
They noted that tangible results can be achieved when industry challenges and academic research are closely connected, emphasizing their hope that the Kanana Scholar advisory program will serve as a foundation for such collaboration.
Source: Korea Times News
