Naver, Naver Cloud, and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) said on the 7th that on the 6th at KAI's Sacheon headquarters, with key executives from the three companies in attendance, including Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon, Naver Cloud CEO Kim Yu-won, and KAI President and CEO Kim Jong-chul, they agreed to develop a defense-specialized artificial intelligence (AI) model based on domestic independent technology.
As AI has emerged as the core of future defense competitiveness, the plan is to minimize security risks by implementing an independent sovereign AI optimized for Korea's defense and security environment without relying on foreign technology.
The three companies will first jointly develop a "defense-specialized AI foundation model" optimized for the defense sector. Building on that, they plan to jointly participate in government-led national research and development projects and block funding programs to develop next-generation defense physical AI core technologies. They also plan to embed AI into future aerospace platforms, such as manned–unmanned teaming (MUM-T), to advance the level of autonomy.
In particular, in a future battlefield environment where manned and unmanned fighters and satellites are hyperconnected, as with the next-generation air combat system (NACS) that KAI is developing, Naver said this collaboration is expected to play a key role in accelerating the development of physical AI.
Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon said, "As technological self-reliance in defense and security is directly linked to national sovereignty, securing an independent sovereign AI infrastructure is more important than anything else," and added, "By combining Team Naver's advanced AI capabilities with KAI's defense infrastructure, we will solidify the technological sovereignty of Korea's defense security and do our best to create new global competitiveness in the future defense industry."