South Korea’s Naver Corp. is establishing a dedicated venture capital arm in Silicon Valley to strengthen its artificial intelligence capabilities as competition intensifies globally, according to people familiar with the matter.
The new subsidiary, Naver Ventures, will focus on identifying AI talent and investing in advanced AI technologies and startups across the United States, with plans to integrate these innovations into the company’s broader AI strategy. The move follows Naver’s earlier expansion of its D2 Startup Factory (D2SF) corporate venture capital unit to North America last October.
Naver, which operates Korea’s dominant search engine, has been aggressively pursuing AI development through its HyperCLOVA X large language model and AI-powered services. The company reported a 13.7% year-over-year revenue increase to 2.89 trillion won (US$2.13 billion) in Q4 2024, with its cloud division showing particularly strong growth at 41.1%.
The Silicon Valley venture arm represents a strategic pivot as Naver competes with global tech giants in the AI race. The company spends approximately 20% of annual sales on R&D and has established research centers across Europe, Japan, and Vietnam.
With AI remaining Silicon Valley’s investment focal point, Naver’s new venture unit positions the company to tap into the region’s innovation ecosystem while providing Korean startups a potential bridge to overseas markets.
