Kakao announced at its developer conference 'if(kakao)', held on the 13th at the Kakao AI Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, that it will let users directly choose how they use AI within KakaoTalk. CEO Shin Jung-ah said, "Even when people use the same KakaoTalk, the help they expect from AI and the scope of tasks they are willing to hand over differ from person to person."

According to Kakao, fewer than 1% of KakaoTalk users actively use AI, and about 20% use it at the level of everyday conversation. Since most users rarely use AI at all, Kakao says it is difficult to offer AI to everyone in the same way. KakaoTalk will therefore be organized into three parts: the existing messenger, the AI assistant 'Kanana Space' that can be summoned from anywhere, and a new space that connects AI agent teams created by users. Kakao plans to open the new space in the first half of next year.

Kanana Space goes beyond answering questions: it understands the user's history and current context and handles tasks directly. Swiping the KakaoTalk screen with two fingers brings up the Ryan character, which can be instructed by voice or text, and a floating button can also summon it. It currently supports sending messages, checking schedules, web search, and changing KakaoTalk settings, and Kakao plans to expand it to shopping, money transfers, gifts, and reservations. However, important actions such as sending messages or making payments run only after the user checks and approves them.

The service that lets users build their own AI agents is 'Canvas'. Canvas is installed on a PC and creates agents by connecting tools suited to the tasks the user defines. For example, if a user builds an agent to help with year-end tax settlement or tax filing, it gathers the necessary documents, enters them on the relevant websites, and completes filing and payment once the user gives final confirmation. For security, the browser the agent uses is separated from the user's everyday browser, and sensitive operations such as logins or payments run only within permitted bounds. Kakao plans to begin a closed beta test of Canvas with some users as early as this year.

To connect Canvas with external services, Kakao is preparing MCP (a standard linking AI models with external tools) and agent-to-agent communication rules (A2A). It is also planning an open AI architecture that would let agents built on other frameworks connect within KakaoTalk. Specific details are scheduled to be revealed in the first half of next year.

Kakao announced at its developer conference 'if(kakao)', held on the 13th at the Kakao AI Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, that it will let users directly choose how they use AI within KakaoTalk. CEO Shin Jung-ah said, "Even when people use the same KakaoTalk, the help they expect from AI and the scope of tasks they are willing to hand over differ from person to person."

According to Kakao, fewer than 1% of KakaoTalk users actively use AI, and about 20% use it at the level of everyday conversation. Since most users rarely use AI at all, Kakao says it is difficult to offer AI to everyone in the same way. KakaoTalk will therefore be organized into three parts: the existing messenger, the AI assistant 'Kanana Space' that can be summoned from anywhere, and a new space that connects AI agent teams created by users. Kakao plans to open the new space in the first half of next year.

Kanana Space goes beyond answering questions: it understands the user's history and current context and handles tasks directly. Swiping the KakaoTalk screen with two fingers brings up the Ryan character, which can be instructed by voice or text, and a floating button can also summon it. It currently supports sending messages, checking schedules, web search, and changing KakaoTalk settings, and Kakao plans to expand it to shopping, money transfers, gifts, and reservations. However, important actions such as sending messages or making payments run only after the user checks and approves them.

The service that lets users build their own AI agents is 'Canvas'. Canvas is installed on a PC and creates agents by connecting tools suited to the tasks the user defines. For example, if a user builds an agent to help with year-end tax settlement or tax filing, it gathers the necessary documents, enters them on the relevant websites, and completes filing and payment once the user gives final confirmation. For security, the browser the agent uses is separated from the user's everyday browser, and sensitive operations such as logins or payments run only within permitted bounds. Kakao plans to begin a closed beta test of Canvas with some users as early as this year.

To connect Canvas with external services, Kakao is preparing MCP (a standard linking AI models with external tools) and agent-to-agent communication rules (A2A). It is also planning an open AI architecture that would let agents built on other frameworks connect within KakaoTalk. Specific details are scheduled to be revealed in the first half of next year.