Naver, a leading South Korean tech giant, is intensifying its global ambitions in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) with the establishment of a new investment arm based in the United States. This significant move is complemented by Naver's first investment in TwelveLabs, an innovative video AI startup located in the heart of Silicon Valley. This announcement coincides with the visit of Naver's founder and board chairman, Lee Hae-jin, to the U.S., marking his first overseas engagement since he returned to active management in March 2023.

During his visit, Lee Hae-jin articulated a bold vision, stating, “AI is not something we can do alone. Naver will invest with everything it has — to survive and move forward.” This emphasizes the company’s commitment to harnessing AI's potential through collaboration and investment.

On Thursday, Lee hosted a networking event at the luxurious Four Seasons Hotel in Silicon Valley, where he announced the selection of TwelveLabs as the inaugural target for Naver's newly formed venture capital arm, Naver Ventures. Founded in 2021, TwelveLabs has quickly garnered attention for its advanced multimodal AI technology that excels at understanding and searching video content. The company has been recognized as one of the top 100 AI companies in the world for four consecutive years by the prestigious market intelligence firm, CB Insights.

At the networking event, Lee emphasized the significance of forming connections and collaborating with talented startups and individuals. The gathering attracted over 200 influential figures from the Silicon Valley tech ecosystem, including prominent entrepreneurs and executives such as John S. Kim, co-founder and CEO of Sendbird; Ahn Ikk-jin, co-founder and CEO of Moloco; Kim Seong-moo, CEO of Datarize; and Kim Jin-woo, CEO of Liner.

Naver Ventures, the new investment entity launched by Naver, aims to scout and support promising startups across various industries and geographies. The legal framework for establishing this venture is expected to wrap up by the end of this month. Following this, Kim Nam-sun, who heads Naver’s strategic and venture capital investments division, will take the lead in this exciting new initiative. This division has been newly established as part of a recent organizational reshuffle and focuses on consumer-to-consumer (C2C) commerce, which includes businesses like Poshmark—acquired by Naver in 2022—and investments in North American startups.

This event not only marked a pivotal moment for Naver but also served as Lee’s first official appearance abroad since his managerial return in March after a nearly seven-year hiatus. It underscores Naver's strategic intent to bolster its presence within the North American startup ecosystem.

At the event, Lee outlined two critical focus areas for Naver's future endeavors: commerce and sovereign AI. The concept of sovereign AI refers to the development of self-reliant AI capabilities by individual countries, utilizing their own data and infrastructure. Lee remarked, “In Korea, we have Smartstore. In Japan, we operate through Line and Yahoo, and we’ve acquired Poshmark in the U.S. and Wallapop in Spain.” He emphasized that C2C commerce represents a vital strategic direction for the company.

Moreover, Lee noted that AI development is likely to become increasingly segmented by regional characteristics and specific use cases. He conveyed Naver's aim to become a strong partner in fostering diversity within AI applications, stating, “If AI can be broken down by service type into unified and diversified models, Naver aims to be a strong partner on the side of diversity.”

In line with its commitment to expanding its AI capabilities, Naver recently announced a partnership with Nvidia to develop a large language model tailored specifically for the Thai language. Additionally, the company is actively exploring opportunities in the Middle Eastern AI market through its regional hub, Naver Arabia.

As Naver embarks on this ambitious journey to enhance its global presence in the AI sector, the tech community will be keenly watching how these investments and collaborations unfold.