KT speeds up commercialization of AI agent service

Head of the Strategy and New Business Division Shin Soo-jung

KT Corp. has officially embarked on the commercialization of its artificial intelligence (AI) agent service, with support from its Strategy and New Business Division. Until now, the service had been led by the telco’s AI Tech Lab.

According to industry sources on Wednesday, KT held a town hall meeting at its Songpa office in Seoul on Tuesday. Led by Shin Soo-jung, head of the Strategy and New Business Division, the meeting involved key executives and employees discussing policies and solidifying plans for the AI agent’s commercialization.

On July 1, KT announced an organizational realignment on a rolling basis and decided to accelerate the development and deployment of its AI agent service.

Lee Jin-hyung, vice president in charge of AI business, will serve as the head of the AI Agent Development Support Task Force.

With the goal of advancing its AI infrastructure business, KT has established an AI/Cloud Business organization within the Strategy and New Business Division.

The new organization has been given the crucial task of supporting AI agent development.

AI agents, typically envisioned as personal AI assistants, are designed to enhance internal work efficiency initially. They can also extend functionality to IPTV and mobile devices.

KT also aims to integrate AI agents into various services through its subsidiaries, including those in the finance and card sectors.

This move comes as other major telecom companies have already made strides in the AI agent market.

SK telecom Co. launched its AI agent “A.” in September 2023, featuring revenue-generating services such as call recording summaries and real-time translation.

LG Uplus Corp. introduced four AI agent services, known as “Chat Agent,” in April, covering customer consultations, technical support, product recommendations, and business market solutions.