South Korean AI startup Upstage announced on May 7 that it has completed the acquisition of AXZ, the company that operates the internet portal Daum.
The acquisition is part of Upstage’s plan to expand its AI-powered search and content services.
The deal follows an agreement signed in January, in which Kakao exchanged its full stake in AXZ for shares in Upstage after around four months of discussions and review. The companies did not disclose the financial details of the transaction.
Upstage said it plans to integrate its Solar large language model into Daum’s search engine and content platform. This will allow users to receive direct AI-generated answers instead of relying only on traditional keyword searches.
The acquisition comes as South Korean technology companies are racing to add generative AI features to search engines, media platforms, and other consumer services.
“We are confident that the combination of our leading technology and Daum’s three decades of service will be the watershed of a new era in the AI industry,” said Upstage CEO Kim Sung-hoon.
The acquisition still requires approval from South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission before the deal can be completed.
However, industry experts expect the approval process to go smoothly because Upstage is not a large platform company, and Daum only holds around 2% of the country’s search market.
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