New York Times "Technology Experiment for Naver's Future"
Wall Street Journal "5G Specialized Network Built in Building 1784"
[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] The world is paying attention to Naver's second headquarters, '1784'. Naver is leveraging 1784, which consolidates its core technologies, to enter the bidding competition for the smart city construction project promoted by Saudi Arabia, prompting foreign media to consecutively spotlight the technologies of 1784.
According to industry sources on the 25th, recently, the American daily newspapers The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and The New York Times have focused their coverage on 1784. On the 23rd (local time), The New York Times introduced the robotic technologies applied in 1784. The article was also published online on the 17th. Last month, WSJ reported on the 5G specialized network technology applied in 1784.
The New York Times introduced robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud technologies including the delivery robot 'Rookie', explaining, "While it is common for tech companies to encourage employees to test their services, Naver is transforming the entire workspace into a research and development (R&D) laboratory using robots, experimenting with future-oriented space technologies for its employees."
In particular, the article highlighted Naver's extensive research to enable robots to move in ways that make employees feel comfortable, introducing Naver's efforts in the field of robot-human interaction. Examples include experiments to determine the optimal position for robots to board elevators and designing interfaces displayed on the robot's screen to allow people to easily predict the robot's movements. Related technologies have also been published in academic papers.
The New York Times also paid close attention to rules related to 'robot privacy'. To alleviate privacy concerns about cameras mounted on robots operating in workspaces, Naver employs proprietary positioning technology to set the camera angle so that photos are taken only below the waist of people.
Currently, about 100 robots are operating in 1784, opening office doors and boarding elevators autonomously. They also deliver packages and coffee to employees throughout the entire 1784 building. This is possible because a triple communication network is established, including 5G (5th generation mobile communication), specialized networks, Wi-Fi (wireless internet), and additional 5G networks from mobile carriers, ensuring that robot communication is never interrupted even for a moment.
Meanwhile, foreign media interest in 1784 is related to Naver's recent entry into the bidding competition for the 700 trillion won-scale Saudi smart city construction project, 'NEOM City'. Earlier this month, Naver accompanied Won Hee-ryong, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, on his visit to Saudi Arabia, introducing 'ARC (AI, Robot, Cloud)' to local government and corporate officials, officially launching the bidding competition.
ARC is the core technology forming the backbone of Naver's robot strategy. It focuses on efficiently controlling numerous robots moving in indoor and outdoor spaces using cloud technology. It is applied in 1784 and is currently undergoing experiments for further development. Naver has plans to commercialize solutions based on its multi-robot intelligence system ARC and 5G-based cloud by 2023.
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