Naver signs KRW 2 trillion compute contract, landing first AI factory order

TechFlow report, November 12: According to The Korea Times, Naver has signed a KRW 2 trillion (approximately USD 1.5 billion) compute service supply contract with a U.S.-based artificial intelligence inference company, securing the first customer for its AI factory business. Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon said on the third-quarter earnings call that the contract confirms genuine market demand and validates the preliminary commercial viability of the AI factory business.

The contract covers compute services using next-generation GPUs, with initial supply scheduled for 2027 and commercial services expected to launch in the first half of next year, with revenue recognized gradually thereafter. The business is being advanced in partnership with Canadian asset manager Brookfield and NVIDIA, with capacity planned to expand from 55 megawatts next year to 200 megawatts by 2028. Naver said contracted data center capacity has exceeded its initial 200-megawatt target for 2028; this first order corresponds to 20 megawatts, while more than 10 other companies are in discussions for follow-on contracts.

Financial results announced the same day showed Naver's third-quarter revenue rose 10.7% year over year to KRW 3.47 trillion, marking a record for the sixth consecutive quarter; operating profit fell 20.9% year over year to KRW 451.3 billion, with an operating margin of 13%. By segment, platform revenue was KRW 1.95 trillion (+7.3%), financial platform revenue was KRW 487.7 billion (+14.1%), and global business revenue was KRW 1.04 trillion (+15.9%). Naver also plans to launch a personal AI agent application before year-end and establish a dedicated logistics subsidiary, investing nearly KRW 1 trillion by 2030.

Source: TechFlow