"Various Data Analyzed by AI Technology, Released via Cloud"
"Education Support for Startup Investment, Online Entrepreneurship, and AI Talent Development"
IT Industry Welcomes Digital New Deal... Calls for Regulatory Easing
[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] Han Seong-suk, CEO of Naver, emphasized on the 14th that she will prepare services for small business owners and young adults based on data.
CEO Han participated online in the 7th Emergency Economic Meeting 'Korean New Deal National Report Conference' held at the Blue House in the afternoon and made this statement. She expressed her stance on the Digital New Deal from the 'Gak' data center server room in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, via video connection instead of the Blue House.
At the event, she said, "We will create innovative financial services for small business owners and young adults based on Naver's data."
She added, "Because we understand the potential and value of data better than anyone, we will contribute to social development through data," and "We plan to publicly share various data analyzed by artificial intelligence (AI) technology through the cloud." She continued, "I hope data will be freely utilized in AI research and various industries, becoming the catalyst for Korea's 4th Industrial Revolution."
She also expressed her commitment, saying, "We will create easier and more convenient platforms for small business owners and creators, and spare no effort in supporting startup investments, online entrepreneurship, and education for nurturing AI talent."
CEO Han's announcement of the Digital New Deal from the Chuncheon data center rather than Naver's headquarters in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, appears to be a strategy to emphasize the importance of data centers. She introduced the Chuncheon data center as "a large 'data dam' where 20 years of daily records and various information from Naver users are gathered," and explained, "The name 'Gak' was taken from 'Janggyunggak,' which preserved the Tripitaka Koreana for hundreds of years and passed knowledge to future generations."
Naver was the first domestic internet company to establish its own data center in Chuncheon. The Chuncheon data center boasts the largest scale among domestic data centers. Completed in 2013, it was built on a scale of 54,229㎡, equivalent to seven football fields.
She also explained, "The data gathered here is helping small business owners nationwide who sell products on Naver's online store, 'Smart Store,'" and added, "By utilizing AI technology to provide big data-based statistical tools to small business owners, their sales are steadily increasing, creating a positive trend that even generates new jobs." She predicted, "Now, through the internet, the commercial areas of small business owners have expanded nationwide and will soon extend beyond Korea to overseas markets."
Regarding the future of data centers, she forecasted, "While data centers so far have focused on recording and storage, future data centers will evolve into smart data centers, or 'brain centers.'" She said, "Until now, robots had complex brains inside their bodies, but in the future, servers connected by fast networks will act as the brain that issues commands."
Regarding the government's Digital New Deal policy, she said, "I hope the government will create new policies and systems to help us stay ahead in global competition," and added, "If the public, government, and companies unite with one heart and strength, becoming a digital powerhouse will not be a dream but our reality."
Meanwhile, the IT industry welcomed the government's Digital New Deal policy. However, some voices point out that to foster growth in the IT sector, regulations related to data, such as the Data 3 Act, need to be eased.
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