{"slug": "kakao-to-split-into-two-listed-firms", "title": "Kakao to split into two listed firms", "summary": "Kakao Corp. will split into two listed companies, Kakao AI and Kakao X, with the board approving a demerger on Friday. Kakao AI will house KakaoTalk and AI, advertising, and commerce businesses, while Kakao X will hold fintech, content, and mobility. The split ratio is 0.36 for Kakao AI and 0.64 for Kakao X, with shareholder approval sought on Dec. 17 and trading to begin Jan. 27, 2027.", "body_md": "Demerger to separate KakaoTalk-centered AI business from fintech, content and mobility\n\nKakao said Friday it will split into two listed companies, Kakao AI and Kakao X, as the IT giant restructures its businesses around artificial intelligence.\n\nKakao AI will house KakaoTalk, South Korea’s dominant mobile messenger, along with the company’s AI, advertising and commerce businesses. Kakao X will bring together fintech, content and mobility under an investment-focused structure.\n\nOn Friday, the company’s board approved the demerger under which Kakao AI will be spun off as a new company while Kakao X will remain the surviving entity.\n\nThe split ratio has been set at 0.36 for Kakao AI and 0.64 for Kakao X, based on their respective net book values. Existing Kakao shareholders will receive shares in both companies according to the ratio.\n\nKakao said the move was aimed at giving businesses with different characteristics and stages of growth greater autonomy in strategy, execution and capital allocation.\n\nWith KakaoTalk at its core, Kakao AI will focus on developing new user experiences and revenue models by integrating artificial intelligence with advertising and commerce as the company prepares for the era of agentic AI. Operating subsidiaries including DK Techin and K&Works will also be placed under the new entity.\n\nKakao CEO Chung Shin-a has been tapped to lead Kakao AI. Meanwhile, Kim Do-young, Kakao Investment CEO and head of group investment strategy at Kakao’s corporate alignment council, has been nominated to head Kakao X.\n\n“This split is a decision to transform Kakao into a structure built for the speed and accountability required in the AI era,” Chung said.\n\n“Kakao AI and Kakao X will establish strategies and capital allocation principles tailored to their respective businesses, execute more quickly and communicate their results with the market in a more transparent manner.”\n\nKakao founder Kim Beom-su said the overhaul was aimed at redesigning the group’s growth structure for the AI era.\n\n“In the mobile era, Kakao was among the first to venture into uncharted territory, creating innovations that changed users’ daily lives,” Kim said. “The AI era demands agility on an entirely different level. We will redesign our growth structure around the two engines of Kakao AI and Kakao X so that the value they create can be shared with shareholders, users and our crew.”\n\nKakao plans to seek shareholder approval for the demerger at an extraordinary general meeting on Dec. 17, with the split scheduled to take effect Jan. 1, 2027. Shares in both companies are scheduled to begin trading separately on Jan. 27.\n\nyeeun@heraldcorp.com", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/kakao-to-split-into-two-listed-firms", "canonical_source": "https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10847981", "published_at": "2026-08-21 02:40:49+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-08-21 02:44:03.819175+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-products", "ai-policy"], "entities": ["Kakao Corp.", "Kakao AI", "Kakao X", "KakaoTalk", "Chung Shin-a", "Kim Do-young", "Kim Beom-su", "DK Techin"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/kakao-to-split-into-two-listed-firms", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/kakao-to-split-into-two-listed-firms.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/kakao-to-split-into-two-listed-firms.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/kakao-to-split-into-two-listed-firms.jsonld"}}