Kakao said on March 9 it launched its artificial intelligence (AI) cooperation program, Kanana Scholar, to exchange with academic experts and future talent. It also held an inauguration ceremony for an expert advisory group.

Kanana Scholar is a cooperation program set up to discuss Kakao's AI strategy and technology with academia and explore development directions. It will be operated around an expert advisory group made up of academics and exchange programs for university students and young people.

The expert advisory group will consist of 7 professors in AI and computing at major universities in South Korea. It will provide advice on Kakao's overall AI technology and services.

Participants include Sunjoo Kim (김선주), a professor in the Division of Advanced Computing at Yonsei University; Seungryong Kim (김승룡), a professor at KAIST Kim Jaechul Graduate School of AI; Jinwoo Shin (신진우), an ICT chair professor at KAIST; Juho Lee (이주호), a professor at KAIST Kim Jaechul Graduate School of AI; Junhyuk Jang (장준혁), a professor in the Department of Electronic Engineering at Hanyang University; Hanbyeol Joo (주한별), a professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Seoul National University; and Jonghyun Choi (최종현), a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Seoul National University.

Kakao held the inauguration ceremony on March 6 and confirmed the advisory direction and annual agenda. It plans to continue discussions focusing on key technology and service strategies including the Kanana foundation model, on-device AI, agentic AI and AI safety. Kakao also plans to boost the execution of its AI strategy through regular exchanges and secure insights from diverse perspectives on technology and industry changes.

Professors who took part in the ceremony said, "As AI rapidly spreads across services and platforms, corporate issues and academic research topics are becoming increasingly closely linked." They added, "We expect that when the industry's problem awareness and academic research are organically connected, it can lead to tangible results, and we hope the Kanana Scholar expert advisory program becomes a foundation for such cooperation."

A Kakao official said, "We expect that through continued discussions with top-level AI and ICT experts in South Korea, we will be able to further refine the strengths and direction of Kakao AI." The official added, "We will continue to explore development directions for AI technology and services together through various programs spanning academia."