LG U+ announced that it will enter the global market with an AI agent service that can be used without concerns about personal information leaks, aiming to achieve $300 million in sales (approximately 430 billion KRW) by 2028. The company outlined a blueprint for delivering specific outcomes by collaborating with global big tech firms, including Google, with whom they have established a strategic partnership, and Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Hong Beom-sik, CEO of LG U+, stated during his first press conference since taking office on the second day of the ‘Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025’ held at the Inside by Melia Hotel in Barcelona, Spain, on March 4 (local time), “To gain consumer trust, AI must evolve into ‘Assured Intelligence’.”
Hong emphasized the importance of privacy protection in the era of AI, noting that “most companies defensively check security as a final step when creating new services, but LG U+ aims to reverse this order by building security-focused foundations from the start.”
In fact, LG U+’s AI agent ‘Xio’, launched in November last year, is designed based on ‘on-device’ technology that operates the AI model only within smart devices without using separate cloud services. This has been well-received in countries where there are concerns about behavioral information such as searched contents and accessed sites being transmitted to external clouds. Hong mentioned that “global telecom companies such as Japan’s KDDI and the Middle East’s Zain Group showed significant interest in Xio” and expressed optimism about sharing meaningful achievements in the future.
The focus on security is rooted in a management philosophy that believes it is difficult to earn consumer trust by only focusing on technological advancement. Hong noted, “While technological advancement has its bright sides, there are also dark sides,” adding that “our internal research found that 82% worry about security, such as personal information theft in the AI era.” He emphasized the importance of considering the negative side effects technology can bring, stating, “Although it may sound old-fashioned, the focus is on people who use AI rather than AI technology itself.” He also highlighted the challenge of prioritizing security without slowing down service development speed, boldly claiming that LG U+ will venture into new areas that no one in South Korea has dared to try.
Hong revealed plans to actively cooperate with global big tech companies like Google and AWS. The company plans to integrate Xio with Google’s search and AI technology to provide ‘Actionable AI’ services such as analysis, summarization, and recommendations. He said, “Google initially approached us to join forces and explore global markets,” with the goal of creating $300 million in value by 2028. In the Business-to-Business (B2B) sector, LG U+ is solidifying collaboration with AWS, the global leader in cloud services, discussing cooperation in areas like Sovereign AI, AI Contact Centers (AICC), and enterprise AI consulting services.
At MWC 2025, LG U+ showcased AI security technologies under the name ‘Xi Guardian’, focusing on assured intelligence such as anti-deep voice, on-device small language model (SLM), and quantum cryptography (PQC) technologies. Hong proposed the 4A strategy for LG U+’s AI initiative: Assured, Adaptive, Accompanied, and Altruistic.
Hong concluded, “While LG U+ played the role of a market-shaking newcomer in the telecommunication era, in the AI era, we aim to be an ‘agenda-setter’ leading the market. The business focus will be on meaningful revenue growth rather than merely increasing domestic sales.”
Barcelona-based reporter Kim Gyu-sik.