South Korea’s Kakao will host a large-scale technology conference in October to unveil its artificial intelligence vision. The event is expected to serve as a platform for the company to directly persuade the market and shareholders of its AI business’s growth potential, following fierce backlash after last month’s announcement of a corporate split.
Kakao announced on the 7th that it will hold “if(kakao)26” both online and offline from October 13 to 14 at the Kakao AI Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province. Now in its eighth year, this year’s slogan is “Connections Meet Intelligence.” The company plans to present a vision of expanding each user’s capabilities and potential by adding AI technology to the connection experience Kakao has built, while also addressing the responsibility and operational standards that technology must uphold in the AI era.
The first day’s keynote will be delivered by Kakao CEO Chung Shin-a. Under the theme “From Connections for All to Intelligence for One,” she will introduce Kakao’s AI direction and related services. Following her, Kim Dae-nyeon, head of design, will present on designing context-aware AI service experiences, and Noh Byeong-seok, performance lead for the Unified Foundation Model, will discuss the current status and future plans of the Kanana model that underpins agentic AI. Chief Technology Officer Song Jae-ha will address technical requirements for safe and responsible AI.
After the keynotes, more than 50 technical sessions will follow, featuring developers from Kakao and its affiliates as speakers. Topics include AI direction, mutual growth, and models and agents, with speakers sharing experiences from actual services and development environments. On the second day, the 14th, discussions under the theme “When Technology Becomes Trust” will cover governance, stability and infrastructure, and AI-driven development life cycle (AI-DLC).
This year’s event also features expanded participant experience programs. These include fireside chats on how AI has transformed development processes and responsible technology operations, after-sessions for in-depth Q&A with speakers, and keyword-based networking by role and interest area. Registration is open from September 7 through noon on September 28 via the official website. Major sessions will be livestreamed online, and full recordings will be released as video-on-demand (VOD) after the event.
A Kakao official said, “This if(kakao) event is an opportunity to present the new value Kakao will create by adding AI technology to the connection experience we have built, and to share the standards and responsibilities under which that technology must operate.” The official added, “We will continue to expand Kakao’s essence—connection—more safely and valuably, based on trustworthy technology and AI operational experience.”
The Battle to Justify the Split Amid Shareholder Backlash
This conference is drawing attention because it comes as Kakao faces the challenge of dispelling market distrust surrounding its corporate split. On the 21st of last month, Kakao’s board of directors approved a plan to divide the company into Kakao AI and Kakao X. Kakao AI will oversee AI, advertising, and commerce businesses centered on KakaoTalk, while Kakao X will manage techfin, content, and mobility affiliates and invest in future businesses. The split ratio, based on net asset book value, is 0.36 for Kakao AI and 0.64 for Kakao X. The plan is to complete the split in January next year after an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting on December 17.
Market reaction was cold immediately after the announcement. The stock price recorded a double-digit intraday decline that day, and multiple securities firms lowered their target prices and investment ratings. The market’s distrust stems from Kakao’s history of “piecemeal listings”—spinning off profitable businesses such as Kakao Games, KakaoBank, and Kakao Pay into separately listed subsidiaries, which shareholders say eroded value.
This split differs from past spin-offs in that existing shareholders will receive shares in both companies according to the split ratio. However, shareholder activist platform Act has publicly raised concerns, arguing that the benefits of the split have not been sufficiently demonstrated.
According to preliminary shareholder voting results released by Act on the 7th, 99.97% of participating shares voted in favor of “opening a campaign to respond to the split,” and 100% supported “requesting detailed analysis from Act Research.” However, Act has decided to give Kakao an opportunity to first present shareholder value enhancement measures rather than immediately launching an opposition campaign.
Act concluded that the rationale Kakao has put forward for the split—faster decision-making and business-specific resource allocation—is insufficient to justify the move. Independent management by business unit can be achieved through organizational restructuring or a separate CEO structure, Act argues. The platform cited Samsung Electronics as an example of a company that operates its semiconductor and consumer electronics businesses independently within a single listed entity, noting that differences in business nature do not necessarily justify creating separate listed companies.
The difficulty of reversing a split was also flagged as a concern. While organizational restructuring with divisional CEOs can be adjusted as needed, merging two separately listed companies back together would involve complex procedures and potential disputes.
Lee Sang-mok, CEO of Act, said, “Splitting a company worth 100 into 60 and 40 doesn’t suddenly increase its value.” He added, “Kakao must prove what clear benefits can only be achieved by dividing the listed company into two.” He noted, “Since the largest shareholder and related parties’ 24.1% stake alone cannot pass the resolution, this December extraordinary shareholders’ meeting will be a test of whether the company can directly persuade minority shareholders.”
Valuation Uncertainty After the Split
In the market, there are considerable concerns about valuation uncertainty following the split. Observers note that Kakao AI will face pressure to prove profitability, while Kakao X will inevitably face a discount due to its nature as an investment and holding company.
Oh Dong-han, an analyst at Samsung Securities, said, “With platform businesses excluded, Kakao X becomes a pure investment company holding stakes in listed and unlisted subsidiaries.” He added, “Considering the potential for additional subsidiary listings, including Kakao Mobility’s planned IPO, the net asset value (NAV) discount from overlapping listings is bound to expand.”
Oh said, “The combined enterprise value after the split will be a battle between the extent of Kakao AI’s re-rating and Kakao X’s de-rating.” He added, “While the potential for an expanded holding company discount at Kakao X is visible, if AI business competitiveness and monetization do not improve, the AI division’s re-rating may struggle to offset X’s de-rating.”
As of August, the sum-of-the-parts valuation by domestic and international securities firms puts Kakao’s potential value at 34.2 trillion won (approximately $25.4 billion), but the three-month average market capitalization stands at only 16.8 trillion won (approximately $12.5 billion), creating a valuation gap of 17.4 trillion won (approximately $12.9 billion). Kakao explains that a discount of roughly 50% exists because the growth potential of KakaoTalk and the value of major subsidiaries are not fully reflected.
Kanana, the AI companion service Kakao unveiled last year, has yet to produce clear results. For Kakao AI to command a premium after the split, the combination of AI technology and the KakaoTalk platform must translate into tangible performance. Kakao is preparing a paid membership program that links major affiliate services and user benefits centered on KakaoTalk.
Internal opposition is also a variable. The Kakao labor union has signaled it will campaign to persuade shareholders to vote down the proposal at the December shareholders’ meeting, citing a lack of concrete reform and employment stability measures in the split plan. A corporate split requires a special resolution at the shareholders’ meeting, needing approval from at least two-thirds of voting rights held by shareholders present and at least one-third of total issued shares.
Suh Jung-yeon, an analyst at Shinyoung Securities, said, “This split should be viewed as a business restructuring that occurs in the life cycle of a corporate group.” She added, “It could be an opportunity for Kakao AI’s goal to shift from maximizing revenue across the Kakao ecosystem, including affiliates, to finding the optimal combination that users can choose.”
The split plan will take effect on January 1 next year after the December extraordinary shareholders’ meeting. Kakao AI is scheduled to be relisted on the 27th of the same month, with Kakao X changing its listing on the same day.