Gen Z picks Zeta: Korean chatbot overtakes ChatGPT

Zeta, a locally developed artificial intelligence chatbot app, has overtaken ChatGPT to become the most-used AI chatbot in South Korea, according to new industry data released Tuesday. Wiseapp Retail, a market analytics firm that monitors app and payment trends based on 51.2 million Android and iOS users nationwide, reported that Zeta recorded 73.62 million cumulative hours of user engagement in October. This figure significantly surpassed OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which came in second with 48.28 millio

Nov. 11, 2025

Why big tech is betting billions on South Korea’s AI future

South Korea has emerged as a magnet for major US technology companies in recent months, with Nvidia, OpenAI and Amazon Web Services pouring billions into investments and clinching strategic partnerships to expand the country’s AI infrastructure. Observers say the country offers a rare combination of advantages as Washington and Beijing battle for tech supremacy. Home to top-tier chipmakers and automakers, South Korea — a key US ally and Asia's fourth largest economy — provides manufacturing prow

Nov. 10, 2025

Samsung keeps highest export control rating

Samsung Electronics said Monday it has retained the highest rating in South Korea’s Internal Compliance Program for export control, highlighting its efforts to apply strong compliance standards to its handling of strategic products such as semiconductors and network equipment. The rating, granted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, recognizes companies that voluntarily meet export control requirements for items subject to national security regulations. It rates companies according to

Nov. 10, 2025

[Photo News] Coupang hosts AI hackathon

COUPANG HACKS REAL-WORLD PROBLEMS WITH AI -- Participants work through the night at “Hackseoul 2025,” a 24-hour hackathon held at Coupang’s headquarters in southern Seoul on Saturday and Sunday. Co-hosted by the e-commerce giant Coupang, the event was themed “Artificial Intelligence to Solve Real-World Problems and Future Innovation,” bringing together global firms across AI, blockchain and cloud computing, including Nvidia, Korea’s Lambda256 and Coupang’s IT arm Elev8. More than 120 developers,

Nov. 10, 2025

Smart cities can aid aging Korea, if built for people

BARCELONA, Spain — As South Korea continues its ascent as a global leader in smart city innovation, the integration of AI and advanced technology into urban infrastructure is becoming indispensable. In an exclusive interview at the Smart City Expo World Congress held at Fira Barcelona Gran Via in Barcelona, Spain, Kate O'Neill, an AI strategist and tech humanist at KO Insights, shared her thoughts on how Korea’s smart cities can empower citizens while upholding ethical standards. O'Neill’s visio

Nov. 8, 2025

'No AI bubble': Industry veterans see chip supercycle intact

Despite the steep selloff in global chip and AI stocks that rattled markets this week, industry veterans Colley Hwang and Kim Sung-soo Eric laid out a rosy outlook, downplaying concerns of an "AI bubble" and predicting that the semiconductor "supercycle" will continue. "I think the concerns about an AI bubble come from not really understanding how much the technology is evolving right now," Kim, CEO of Datacrunch Global, said during an interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul on Friday. "The cur

Nov. 7, 2025

Samsung chief's 'right-hand man' steps down

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Chung Hyun-ho, a longtime confidant and “right-hand man” to Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, is stepping back from frontline management as the company reorganizes its de facto management coordination unit. Samsung said Friday that Chung, who has led the Business Support Taskforce, will relinquish his role and remain at the company as a senior advisor to Lee. The taskforce — created in late 2017 after Samsung disbanded its powerful Future Strategy Office in the w

Nov. 7, 2025

'Samsung must rethink everything to survive AI era'

Samsung Electronics needs a bold new strategy to navigate the next industrial shift driven by artificial intelligence — one on par with the late Chair Lee Kun-hee’s “New Management” initiative that reshaped the company more than two decades ago, according to Colley Hwang, founder and chair of Taiwan-based tech research firm Digitimes. Hwang, a four-decade industry veteran, said such reinvention is vital for the future survival of South Korea’s largest industrial powerhouse. He spoke in an interv

Nov. 7, 2025

Kakao posts record quarterly earnings despite user backlash over messenger revamp

Kakao shrugged off public backlash over its recent KakaoTalk messenger revamp to post record earnings in the third quarter, with both revenue and operating profit hitting all-time highs on the back of steady platform growth and surging ad sales. The South Korean tech firm said Friday its July-September sales climbed to 2.09 trillion won ($1.4 billion) on-year, while operating profit jumped 59.4 percent to 208 billion won — beating market consensus of 2.02 trillion won in sales and 163 billion wo

Nov. 7, 2025

Smart City Expo Barcelona showcases AI-powered urban future

BARCELONA, Spain — The Smart City Expo World Congress, the world’s largest and most influential gathering on urban innovation and smart technologies, wrapped up Thursday at Fira Barcelona Gran Via, in Barcelona, Spain, drawing a record-breaking crowd of over 27,000 attendees, according to the event organizer Fira de Barcelona. Artificial intelligence took center stage as the theme of discussions and exhibitions at the 2025 edition, and a newly introduced section titled “AI-enabled cities” highli

Nov. 7, 2025

Samsung completes FlaktGroup acquisition

Samsung Electronics said Thursday it has completed the acquisition of FlaktGroup, Europe’s largest heating ventilation and air conditioning company, in a push to expand its footprint in industrial cooling and data center infrastructure. The tech giant said it will leverage FläktGroup’s manufacturing and sales networks to strengthen research and development and supply chains, while progressively integrating product portfolios to create synergies. The company plans to operate FlaktGroup as an inde

Nov. 6, 2025

Naver to roll out AI agents, ramp up GPU investments

South Korean internet giant Naver is planning to introduce AI agents across key services like shopping and search next year, while investing over 1 trillion won ($691 million) to purchase graphic processing units to bolster infrastructure, ramping up its drive to become a global AI leader. At the company’s flagship tech conference, Dan25, held at Coex in southern Seoul on Thursday, CEO Choi Soo-yeon outlined Naver's AI strategy in a keynote speech, focusing on artificial intleligence agent servi

Nov. 6, 2025

SK hynix wins eco-friendly certification for 15 memory products

SK hynix said Wednesday it has earned decarbonization certification for 15 of its memory products, including its flagship high-bandwidth memory chips, marking the first time a chipmaker has received the recognition across a broad portfolio of AI-related semiconductors. The company stated that its HBM chips, recognized for their industry-leading performance in the global AI market, have now earned recognition for their environmental efforts. “We aim to set a new benchmark in the industry with pro

Nov. 5, 2025

Naver to invest over W1tr in GPUs for physical AI push

South Korean IT giant Naver said Wednesday it will invest more than 1 trillion won ($691 million) in graphic processing units as part of its broader push into physical AI technologies, as its AI-led strategy helped deliver record quarterly earnings in the third quarter this year. “Our goal is to expand the integration of AI into an even wider range of services,” Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon said during a quarterly earnings call, attributing the company’s rapid growth to its “on-service AI” strategy,

Nov. 5, 2025

'Korea is a living lab for future of cities': MIT's Carlo Ratti

BARCELONA, Spain — As cities worldwide race to reinvent themselves with sensors, artificial intelligence and green infrastructure, one country stands out as a real-world laboratory for the future of urban living: South Korea. At the Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, Italian architect and MIT professor Carlo Ratti told The Korea Herald why he sees Seoul as a “living testbed” for how technology, transparency and citizen participation can reshape cities. Ratti, who leads the MIT Senseabl

Nov. 5, 2025