Kakao Corp

South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) announced today that it has selected three private consortiums, led by SK Telecom, KT Corp, and Kakao Corp, to jointly develop artificial intelligence (AI) services accessible to all citizens under the "AI for All" project. Each consortium will receive a total of 512 Nvidia B200 graphics processing units (GPUs), and the government will fully fund the launch and operation of these services next year. The ministry plans to sign agreements with each consortium in September and aims to officially launch the services by the end of this year. The project, initiated in July, aims to drive the country toward an AI-based society, requiring developers to use domestic AI models for at least 50% of the system. A total of six consortiums applied for the competition.

Stablecoin issuer Circle announced on July 23 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with South Korean IT giant Kakao Group to collaborate on blockchain-based payment infrastructure and digital asset technology. The two companies will jointly explore the potential use of USD Coin and Circle's global payment network in the South Korean market, evaluating business opportunities such as payments using USDC, clearing and settlement, and connectivity with digital asset services. Kakao Group includes Kakao, which operates the messaging app KakaoTalk, as well as Kakao Pay and KakaoBank, and the partnership will examine possibilities for combining each company's digital platforms and financial services with Circle's blockchain technology. On the same day, Circle also announced similar MOUs with Viva Republica, which operates Toss, and Toss Bank, to explore cooperation on blockchain payment infrastructure and stablecoin technology.