AI Speaker Market Revival Signal? Kakao 'Minihexa' Launching in the Second Half of the Year

Released After 3 Years Since 'Kakao Mini'

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] Kakao will launch a new personal artificial intelligence (AI) speaker device in the second half of this year. It has been three years since the first AI speaker was introduced in 2017.

According to the information technology (IT) industry on the 22nd, Kakao's subsidiary Kakao Enterprise filed a trademark application for 'mini hexa' in April. Mini Hexa is the successor to the AI speaker 'Kakao Mini,' which Kakao introduced in October 2017. Mini Hexa is expected to be released in the second half of this year.

Other than the fact that its exterior is hexagonal in shape, detailed functions and specifications have not yet been disclosed. Since it is a device following Kakao Mini, it is speculated that new features have been added based on AI speaker functions such as voice recognition and speech. Kakao stated, "We preemptively registered the trademark for product launch," and added, "We are reviewing details such as the release schedule."

AI speakers received significant attention riding the AI boom in 2016-2017. At that time, IT companies such as Naver, Kakao, SK Telecom, and KT consecutively launched new products. Global companies like Google also joined the domestic market competition. In this atmosphere, Kakao Mini sold out 200,000 units in about nine months after its release.

Afterward, with no special new products released, the AI speaker boom slowed down. The utilization rate of AI speakers by users was lower than initially expected, leading to limitations in market expansion. Therefore, attention is focused on whether Kakao's upcoming successor will serve as a signal flare for the stagnant AI speaker market.

Kakao's new AI speaker is expected to serve as a hub that allows users to access Kakao's major services at home, including KakaoTalk, taxi calling, content playback, and the Internet of Things (IoT). Additionally, due to the spread of the non-face-to-face (untact) atmosphere caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, users are spending more time at home, which is expected to increase the device's utilization.