Channel Talk Expands Beyond Korea and Japan to North America: "We Will Lead Innovation"

3-Day 'ChannelCon 2024' Conference Held
'Alp' Based on OpenAI GPT to Understand Customer Intent
'Command' Providing Actions Needed for Customer Response
New Features Announced... Targeting North American Market

Channel Corporation, the operator of the all-in-one artificial intelligence (AI) messenger 'Channel Talk,' has launched a new AI feature that can drastically reduce customer service (CS) inquiries. Leveraging this new feature, the company is set to expand its market reach beyond Korea and Japan to North America.

On the 3rd, Choi Siwon and Kim Jaehong, co-CEOs of Channel Corporation, held the 'ChannelCon2024: Let's Talk Future' conference at the Grand Ballroom of the Grand Intercontinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam, Seoul. This was the company's first conference since its establishment in 2014.

Channel Corporation launched Channel Talk six years ago. It is an all-in-one AI messenger offering features such as chat consultation, customer relationship management (CRM), team messenger, AI internet calls, and video calls. Currently, it is used by over 160,000 companies across 22 countries worldwide, recording an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of 36 billion KRW last year.

On this day, the company introduced the 'Alp' and 'Command' features, which significantly reduce simple CS inquiries. Alp is a generative AI based on OpenAI's ChatGPT that analyzes the intent behind consumer inquiries and provides answers. Command integrates APIs with Channel Talk clients and external solution providers like Cafe24 to support processes needed for handling simple and repetitive inquiries.

The AI chatbot resolves simple inquiries, allowing human agents to focus on important consultations and thereby improve consumer satisfaction quality. Specifically, the company established an AI team in May last year and plans to officially launch Alp, a generative AI agent recognizing natural language based on OpenAI's GPT, within the first half of this year on Channel Talk.

On the 3rd, Kim Jae-hong, co-CEO of Channel Corporation, is giving a presentation at the ChannelCon Conference held at the Grand Ballroom of Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam, Seoul.

"AI Consultation Service Can Reduce Total Inquiries by 50%"

The new features introduced by Channel Corporation were developed after discovering that simple and repetitive inquiries such as scheduled shipping dates and order cancellations account for 70% of total inquiries in online commerce during Channel Talk's operation.

At the opening keynote, co-CEO Choi stated, "A skilled CS agent handles about 200 cases a day," adding, "They spend 1 to 2 minutes on average per consultation, working from the start to the end of their shift."

He continued, "Handling simple repetitive inquiries leads to low wages, which in turn causes recruitment difficulties," explaining, "This creates a vicious cycle where few people handle many consultations. Coupled with the low birthrate issue, I believe CS work is on the brink of collapse."

The company explained that during a private beta test of the new features Alp and Command throughout March, they were able to drastically reduce simple repetitive inquiries. Fashion e-commerce brand 'YourMemo,' which participated in the test, experienced a 44% reduction in total inquiries, a 72% resolution rate for simple inquiries through Alp, and a 76% resolution rate through Command, demonstrating the efficiency of the new features.

Co-CEO Choi emphasized, "These results came from testing only 3 out of 8 recurring consultation types," adding, "If all 8 types are included, we expect to reduce total inquiries by 50 to 70%. For a company investing 10 billion KRW in customer consultations, this means saving at least 5 billion KRW."

Expanding Beyond Korea and Japan into the North American Market

Channel Corporation is actively pursuing an overseas expansion strategy focused on Japan and the United States.

Since entering Japan in 2018, more than 25% of its revenue currently comes from Japan. The company plans to accelerate the development of other overseas markets, including North America, based on the new features to be launched in the first half of the year. To support this, Channel Corporation established a branch office in New York, USA, in June last year.

Recently, the company also underwent rebranding. To effectively realize its mission of "connecting businesses and customers more closely" in the global market, it revamped its brand identity (BI), changing the 'eye' shape of the existing Channel Talk speech bubble symbol to a 'mouth' shape. The company aims to strengthen its position as a global B2B SaaS (Software as a Service) beyond the domestic market.

Co-CEO Kim said, "From the start, I wanted to build a big tech company that serves not only Korea but also Japan and the United States," adding, "As the industry rapidly grows and the importance of CS and customer relationship management increases more than ever, we will lead a paradigm shift with Channel Corporation's technology."