NAVER Unveils $9 Billion AI Infrastructure Plan With NVIDIA Partnership
South Korean tech giant announces ambitious AI factory rollout targeting 200 megawatts by 2028, while core platform shows early traction for generative AI advertising.
AI Infrastructure Push Takes Center Stage
NAVER Corporation outlined an aggressive expansion into AI infrastructure during its second-quarter earnings call, announcing plans to build AI factories in partnership with NVIDIA that will require approximately $9 billion in financing from asset manager Brookfield.
The South Korean internet platform company expects to launch its first 55-megawatt AI factory in the first half of 2027, expanding to 100 megawatts by year-end 2027 and reaching 200 megawatts in 2028, CEO Soo-yeon Choi said. Long-term ambitions target gigawatt-scale capacity (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
"Despite growing demand, expanding supply takes time—it requires large-scale power, suitable sites, cooling infrastructure, skilled talent, regulatory approvals and broad community support," Choi said, positioning NAVER's existing data center expertise as a competitive advantage (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
NVIDIA will participate in a roughly $1 billion private placement of newly issued NAVER shares, marking the chipmaker's first such investment in Asia. Under the partnership structure, NVIDIA provides technology and ecosystem support, Brookfield finances infrastructure, and NAVER leads platform operations and customer service.
Early AI Product Momentum
NAVER's AI Tap service, officially launched in June 2025, surpassed 10 million monthly active users by early August. Weekly return rates have "more than doubled since the early testing phase," while click-through rates for shopping and local content exceeded 40% (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
The company began monetizing generative AI through AI briefing ads, which completed testing in the second quarter and launched commercially in late July. Initial performance metrics showed cost-per-click rates 30% higher than existing search ads, with click-through rates also exceeding traditional formats by more than 30%. Purchase conversion rates improved "more than threefold" compared to standard advertising (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
"In the near term, we are primarily applying AI briefing ads to informational queries that were previously not monetized. This minimizes cannibalization of our existing advertising business," Choi said (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
Commerce Growth Accelerates
NAVER's Smart Store gross merchandise value grew 15.5% year-over-year in the second quarter, with the NAVER Plus Store app driving GMV growth exceeding 35% (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
The company's end-delivery service showed particularly strong traction, with GMV increasing 76% year-over-year as of June. Coverage reached 20% of Smart Store, keeping NAVER on track toward a year-end target of 25% (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
Membership emerged as a key driver, with approximately 80% of app purchasers holding membership subscriptions. Following the expansion of free shipping and returns benefits, purchase frequency among end-delivery membership customers increased roughly 29%, with their transaction share exceeding 70% (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
The company plans to accelerate membership expansion through broader lifestyle partnerships and offline payment benefits, aiming to make membership "a core pillar that connects the entire NAVER ecosystem," according to Choi (earnings call, 2026-08-07).
NAVER shares closed at 210,000 won, giving the company a market capitalization of approximately $22 billion.
This article was generated by MarginX from the earnings call on 2026-08-07. It is not investment advice.