Lee Hae-jin, the founder and chairman of Naver’s board, attended the startup networking event “Venturing NAVER’s Next Chapter” held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Silicon Valley on the 5th (local time). At the event, he presented the background of establishing the new investment corporation “Naver Ventures” and how it plans to contribute to the technological ecosystem.
Known as the “reclusive manager,” Lee has continued his public engagements by visiting the U.S. and Taiwan one after another. Having returned to the frontline of management after seven years, he is putting significant effort into expanding Naver’s global business, including enhancing collaboration in artificial intelligence (AI).
Naver announced on the 8th that Lee attended a networking event on the 5th (local time) with over 200 local startup founders and investors, as Naver prepares to establish its first overseas investment corporation, “Naver Ventures,” in Silicon Valley this month.
Led by Kim Nam-sun, the head of the Strategic Investment Division, Naver Ventures has chosen “Twelve Labs,” a video AI startup founded in Silicon Valley in 2021, as its first investment target. As successful Korean startups like Sendbird and Moloco are increasing in Silicon Valley, this move is seen as Naver’s strategy to form alliances with promising startups through investments.
At the event, Lee stated, “Diversity is important even in the AI era, and for that, collaboration with a variety of partners, not just Naver, is crucial.” He added, “Naver will invest in and support capable startups and talents, connect them with our experiences, and together, we will create an AI era where diversity coexists.”
Since Lee’s return to the board in March, Naver has been actively engaging in collaborations with foreign companies. At the end of last month, Lee discussed building a sovereign AI model and expanding large-scale AI data center operations with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in Taiwan. Choi Soo-yeon, Naver’s CEO, who accompanied Lee on his U.S. visit, had discussions with Netflix executives on the potential for further collaboration following the “Naver Plus Membership Alliance” in Los Angeles on June 3rd.
There is a heightened sense of urgency within the company, as noted by people inside and outside Naver. A Naver official mentioned, “Since Lee’s return, delays in new service launch dates have significantly decreased.” However, labor relations are deteriorating over the return of Choi In-hyuk, the former head of the Tech Business Division, who resigned over responsibility for a “workplace bullying incident” in 2021. Naver’s labor union is opposing the return of Choi, Lee’s close associate, and has scheduled a second protest at the Seongnam Bundang office on June 11th.