AI Unicorn Upstage to Launch AI-Powered Search on Daum Portal

Upstage, the first South Korean AI company to achieve unicorn status with a valuation exceeding 1 trillion won, is set to enter the market by integrating AI into the portal Daum. Starting in July, the company will introduce a "search agent" that aims to provide users with practical, real-life answers across various domains, including shopping, restaurants, and real estate.

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It is realistically difficult to overturn the game right now (against Naver, etc.), but we will create many small victories in areas where we can do well by focusing on user needs.

At a press conference held on June 16, Upstage announced the launch of "Upstage Company" in collaboration with Daum's operator, AXZ, and the AI agent platform Twilio. The "AI Overview" feature, which summarizes and organizes Daum's search results using artificial intelligence, is slated for an official release next month. Lee Geon-su, CEO of AXZ, acknowledged the intense competition with platforms like Naver but expressed confidence in achieving "small victories" by focusing on user needs in areas where they can excel.

Upstage and Daum's differentiated strategy centers on "vertical search." They plan to concentrate on services deeply integrated with real-world databases, addressing areas where generative AI currently struggles to provide accurate answers. Examples include detailed recommendations for student-friendly laptops under 1.5 million won, comparing specifications and prices, or suggesting travel credit cards for overseas trips with annual fees under 30,000 won that include airport lounge benefits.

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Generative AI tends to hallucinate when it doesn't have enough real-world databases. We plan to implement a new search service by partnering with companies that can provide high-quality data in specific fields for the Daum service.

Lee explained that generative AI often suffers from "hallucination" when it lacks sufficient real-world data. To combat this, Upstage plans to partner with specialized providers to offer high-quality data for its new search services on Daum. Meanwhile, Upstage founder and CEO Kim Sung-hoon emphasized the importance of "AI sovereignty," citing the U.S. government's restriction on foreign access to Anthropic's AI model. Kim urged the South Korean government to increase support tenfold for building an independent AI ecosystem, viewing AI as a crucial national strategic asset.

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As AI has become a national strategic asset, the country that possesses the technology can cut off supply at any time if it decides to. Korea should not just watch this happen; the government must increase support tenfold to build an independent AI ecosystem.