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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

KakaoTalk blunder: What went wrong with Korea’s largest messaging app

It has been a turbulent week for Kakao. It ambitiously announced, on Sept. 23, that it would turn its flagship KakaoTalk messaging app into an Instagram-like social platform and maximize ad revenue by locking in users. However, it decided to roll back the new service five days later following severe criticism from users over multiple "unwanted" functions. Industry officials note that the rollback symbolizes more than just a misreading of user preferences. Rather, it highlights deeper flaws in Kakao’s overall decision-making process, which once made the app the country’s most beloved platform and enabled the company to build a mobile platform empire. The tech giant announced Monday that it will bring back the previous list-style format for the Friends tab, which is shown as the messaging app’s main page, while moving the updated feed-style posts to a separate tab. Since its launch, the feed-style tab had been the target of mounting complaints from users, as it showed profile photos of a user’s friends — along with ads — in a random, Instagram-like format. Since KakaoTalk autom

Oct 1, 2025By Nam Hyun-woo
KakaoTalk blunder: What went wrong with Korea’s largest messaging app

Samsung expected to unveil tri-folding smartphone at APEC summit: sources

Samsung Electronics is expected to unveil its first tri-folding smartphone at the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, industry sources said Tuesday. According to the sources, the Korean tech giant plans to showcase the new model at an exhibition on the sidelines of the multilateral summit, scheduled to take place in the southeastern city of Gyeongju on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1. The tri-folding device is an evolution of Samsung Electronics' existing Galaxy foldable series, which features a bi-fold design. The new model is designed to fold in three sections, offering a tablet-sized display when fully unfolded while maintaining the portability of a standard smartphone when closed. Samsung Electronics, known as a trailblazer in the foldable phone market since launching its first foldable model in 2019, has seen increased competition from tech giants, such as Google and Motorola, alongside Chinese manufacturers. According to industry data, Samsung Electronics led the foldable phone market with a share of 32.9 percent in 2024, followed by Huawei with 23.1 percent and Motorola wi

Sep 30, 2025By Yonhap
Samsung expected to unveil tri-folding smartphone at APEC summit: sources

LG Innotek to boost future growth business share to 25% of sales by 2030

LG Innotek is accelerating its push into mobility sensing, robotics and semiconductor components as part of a bold strategy to secure new growth drivers, announcing plans to generate more than 25 percent of its revenue from future growth businesses by 2030. “Our future growth businesses, which are driving the company’s sustainable growth, are expanding rapidly. Let’s work together to grow the share of these new businesses to more than 25 percent of the company’s total revenue by 2030,” LG Innotek CEO Moon Hyuk-soo said during the company’s management session in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province, Sept. 19. “By leveraging our most valuable future assets — high-value core technologies and business experience gained through collaboration with top-tier global customers — let’s build another leading business that creates differentiated customer value.” Moon, who took on the role of CEO in 2023, has been spearheading the expansion, seeking to diversify the business portfolio and establish new growth drivers. One of the flagship initiatives is light detection and ranging (LiD

Sep 30, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
LG Innotek to boost future growth business share to 25% of sales by 2030

Malaysian gas plant partly owned by KEPCO breaks ground

An inauguration ceremony to kick off the construction of a gas plant in Malaysia partly owned by Korea's state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) took place Tuesday in the Southeast Asian country, KEPCO said. The event was held in Pulau Indah, approximately 60 kilometers southwest of Kuala Lumpur, with the chief executive officer (CEO) of KEPCO, Kim Dong-cheol, and Malaysian government officials in attendance, according to the company. KEPCO owns a 25 percent stake in the plant, which is expected to generate up to 1,200 megawatts of electricity. The company will also oversee the entire process, from construction to operation, of the facility, it said. The company predicted the plant to generate up to 11.6 trillion won ($9.3 billion) in sales over the next 21 years. "The successful construction of the gas plant will not only strengthen trust between the two nations but serve as an opportunity for KEPCO's overseas businesses to be recognized on the global stage," Kim said. This year marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Malaysia. Meanwh

Sep 30, 2025By Yonhap
Malaysian gas plant partly owned by KEPCO breaks ground

Kakao to restore KakaoTalk's friends list after widespread complaints

Kakao will roll back an update on KakaoTalk’s Friends tab to incorporate feedback from its users after facing growing backlash with the latest version. The tech giant announced Monday that it will bring back the previous list-style format for the Friends tab, which is shown as the messaging app’s main page, while moving the updated feed-style posts to a separate tab. “The improvements to the Friends tab will be applied within the fourth quarter, taking into account the development schedule,” the company said. The company also said it will further simplify procedures to safeguard underage users. It added a new option to set protection features for minors within its short-form tab and is considering implementing additional measures to make its use and settings more convenient. "In addition to the plans for Friends tab improvement, we are continuously working to enhance the user experience and user interface," a company official said. "We will continue to actively listen to and reflect feedback to ensure users can enjoy an even more convenient KakaoTalk experience." The rollback come

Sep 29, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
Kakao to restore KakaoTalk's friends list after widespread complaints

KT unveils Korean-specialized, GPT-4o-powered SOTA K

KT has launched SOTA K built on GPT-4o, a Korean specialized artificial intelligence (AI) model developed in a strategic partnership with U.S. tech giant Microsoft. The new model will incorporate the Korean language and its social and cultural context on GPT-4o by collecting high-quality Korean-specific datasets and working with Microsoft to adapt the advanced AI model to the Korean context. “SOTA K is an innovative model that combines world-class technology with Korean-specific AI specialization. The technical expertise we have gained through our collaboration with Microsoft will be applied across KT’s future AI developments,” Yoon Kyung-a, head of KT’s Agentic AI Lab, said Monday. “This will not only revitalize the domestic AI ecosystem but also lead innovation in both the public and private sectors, boosting Korea’s overall AI competitiveness.” SOTA K embodies four key principles of Korean AI — data sovereignty protection, cultural relevance, a two-track model strategy to choose between its own models and cooperative, open models, and reliable and responsible AI. It can

Sep 29, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
KT unveils Korean-specialized, GPT-4o-powered SOTA K

OpenAI taps ex-Google Korea chief to spearhead Seoul office

OpenAI has appointed Kim Kyoung-hoon, the former country head of Google Korea, as the inaugural head of OpenAI Korea. The company announced the new head for its regional office on Monday, noting that Kim will be leading OpenAI Korea with the aim of supporting a major artificial intelligence (AI) transformation in the country, drawing on his extensive experience in global strategy and innovation. This appointment comes as the company has been facing growing demand for its technologies in Korea. Over the past year, the number of weekly active users of the company’s ChatGPT has increased more than fourfold. “By combining Korea’s strong capacity for innovation with OpenAI’s technology, I hope to help position Korea as a global leader in AI,” Kim said in a press release. “With the rapid growth in the use of ChatGPT and OpenAI’s application programming interface platform, I plan to work closely with the industry, developer community, academia and government to establish responsible AI practices and create positive and sustainable change across Korean society.” Kim served as the

Sep 29, 2025By Lee Gyu-lee
OpenAI taps ex-Google Korea chief to spearhead Seoul office

Science ministry launches alliance to promote physical AI research

The science ministry on Monday launched an alliance of institutes and businesses to promote research activities in the physical artificial intelligence (AI) sector, which encompasses humanoid robots and autonomous vehicles. The launch came as part of the government's vision to make Korea one of the world's top three AI powerhouses, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT. Physical AI refers to systems in which AI programs can analyze their surroundings to make decisions and take action, used in robots or cars. "We will build a foundation for Korea to take the lead in the physical AI segment and acquire globally competitive technologies," Science Minister Bae Kyung-hoon said during a launch ceremony in Seoul. "Government organizations, including the science, industry and startups ministries, will consolidate their efforts with businesses and universities to establish the ecosystem for the physical AI industry," Bae said. Major businesses joining the alliance include Hyundai Motor Co., HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and LG AI Research. The alliance will have a total of 10 divisions, wi

Sep 29, 2025By Yonhap
Science ministry launches alliance to promote physical AI research

PHOTO Samsung supplies screens to Toyota dealerships

A visitor uses a QR code displayed on a Samsung Electronics screen at a Toyota dealership in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, in this undated handout photo. Samsung Electronics said Monday it has supplied a total of 23,000 screens for digital signage services at 1,250 Toyota dealerships in 40 countries in the first half of this year, propelling Samsung's global digital signage market share to 38.8 percent in the second half of this year. Courtesy of Samsung Electronics

Sep 29, 2025By Nam Hyun-woophoto
[PHOTO] Samsung supplies screens to Toyota dealerships

SK Group to discuss AI ecosystem at APEC CEO Summit

SK Group said Sunday it will host the artificial intelligence (AI) session of the Future Tech Forum, scheduled to be held Oct. 28 in conjunction with the APEC CEO Summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. The conglomerate plans to discuss a national AI ecosystem with global AI industry leaders, renowned scholars and senior government officials at the event, introducing Korea's AI technology capabilities to the world. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, who is also chair of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry which is hosting the APEC CEO Summit, will deliver a keynote address at the session, outlining strategies for a sustainable AI ecosystem within Asia-Pacific countries. Ha Jung-woo, presidential secretary for AI, is scheduled to present on Korea's experiences. Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon, AWS CEO Matt Garman and others will provide attendees an opportunity to engage with global AI leaders. The K-Tech Showcase will take place the same day at Gyeongju Expo Park, featuring the technologies of major Korean companies, including the AI data center solution jointly developed by SK Group

Sep 28, 2025By Park Jae-hyuk
SK Group to discuss AI ecosystem at APEC CEO Summit
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