NAVER said on the 6th that it will pivot its identity by introducing user-tailored artificial intelligence (AI) agents into its core businesses. Moving beyond a simple information-providing search platform, the company said it will play the role of a "chief of staff" that proactively offers options tailored to each individual user and carries them out, centered on its AI agent "Agent N."
On the 6th, Chief Operating Officer Kim Beom-jun of NAVER disclosed this at DAN25, NAVER's annual conference, held at COEX in Samseong-dong, Gangnam-gu.
According to the company, Agent N is "a personalized agent for each individual user that unifies all of NAVER's services and content into one." In the morning, Kim led a keynote session on real-world use cases of a shopping agent based on Agent N and on the AI tab in the integrated search platform. NAVER plans to introduce the shopping agent through NAVER Shopping in the first quarter of next year and the AI tab in the summer.
In the afternoon, Kim provided specific details on business competitiveness and plans at a press briefing. Kim stressed that Agent N will not be a single feature but NAVER's very identity. The company aims to transform NAVER itself based on Agent N from an integrated perspective, not just introduce it into the shopping business.
Kim cited "a distinctive user experience" as Agent N's greatest strength. "The real experts are the staff who actually work offline," Kim said, adding, "I think the experience of helping me at the right place and time, like store clerks do, is truly a very smooth agent experience."
Kim added, "Neither ChatGPT nor Google directly operates a shopping service. Of course, it is possible to show data through crawling, but the approach and execution that helps at the right moment is something NAVER can do."
Kim also cited "trustworthiness" as Agent N's second strength. Using China's "c-commerce" as an example, Kim noted, "C-commerce continues to advance, but it has a clear downside. If an agent finds a good product and you buy it, but there's a problem with the purchase site, who is responsible?" Kim said that considering how NAVER has moved to protect customers over the years, it is clear the company is more trustworthy than overseas firms.
Kim said the AI tab to be integrated into search is slated to roll out starting next summer. The AI tab is an "execution-type agent" that goes beyond simple search. For example, if you enter "beginner running courses," it shows related courses and reviews based on Place, Cafe, and Blog data. It also enables actions such as subscribing to running-focused influencers or exploring and purchasing personalized products.
Kim emphasized that because NAVER has an ecosystem of services spanning search, shopping, local, and finance, it can provide an experience that executes immediately without external integrations.