Anthropic Opens Seoul Office to Expand Korean AI Ecosystem

Anthropic has opened a new office in Seoul, South Korea, to support the growing adoption of Claude and strengthen partnerships across the Korean AI ecosystem. This expansion includes a strategic agreement with the Korean government to prioritize AI safety and the deployment of Claude across major Korean conglomerates, startups, and academic institutions.

AI Safety and Public Sector Collaboration

Anthropic has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT to promote the safe and responsible adoption of AI within the public sector. This collaboration focuses on two primary areas:

  • AI Safety and Cybersecurity: Working with the Korea AI Safety Institute to evaluate model safety specifically for the Korean language.
  • Threat Intelligence: Exchanging information regarding AI-enabled cyber threats.

Enterprise Adoption of Claude and Claude Code

Major Korean business groups and technology companies are integrating Claude into their operational workflows to increase productivity and scale software development.

Engineering and Software Development

  • NAVER: The cloud and AI leader has deployed Claude Code across its entire engineering organization to diversify coding tools and maximize productivity for thousands of engineers.
  • Nexon: Engineering teams utilize Claude Code to write, review, and ship code for live-service games.
  • Samsung SDS: The IT services arm of Samsung Group is deploying Claude, including Claude Code and Claude Cowork, to employees across Samsung Electronics for knowledge work and agentic workflows.

Corporate and IT Services

  • LG CNS: The IT services arm of LG Group is rolling out Claude to thousands of employees for software development and client technology solutions, with plans for broader deployment across the LG Group.
  • Hanwha Solutions: Using AWS Bedrock, Hanwha Solutions is providing Claude to global employees while maintaining strict in-region data-residency and security requirements.

Startup and Nonprofit Integration

Claude is being utilized by Korean startups to power consumer-facing products and by nonprofits to reduce administrative overhead.

  • Channel Corp: The company's customer AI platform, Channel Talk, uses Claude to resolve customer inquiries and analyze sales data for over 230,000 companies across Korea, Japan, and the United States.
  • Good Neighbors Korea: This child rights NGO is using Claude to analyze program outcomes, navigate social welfare laws, and internal guidelines to free frontline social workers from administrative tasks.

Academic Research and Developer Support

Anthropic is expanding its support for the Korean research community and developer ecosystem through direct access and specialized programs.

Research Partnerships

Anthropic is collaborating with the National AI Research Lab (NAIRL), a consortium including KAIST, Korea University, Yonsei University, and POSTECH. Anthropic will provide Claude access to up to 60 NAIRL-affiliated researchers to support research into alignment, robustness, model evaluation, and AI safety.

Developer Ecosystem

Korea is among the top dozen countries globally for Claude.ai usage, particularly in technical and creative fields. To support this growth, Anthropic has launched:

  • Claude for Startups: Now live in Korea.
  • Community Events: Including Claude Meetups (active since September 2025) and the "Claude Build Day" co-hosted with BASS Ventures.
  • Hackathons: A "Push to Prod" hackathon co-hosted with Replit, Korea Investment Partners, and Korea Investment Accelerator, focusing on building with Claude Code.

Leadership and Operations

The Seoul office is led by KiYoung Choi, Representative Director of Korea at Anthropic, who brings 30 years of experience in leading technology businesses within the region.

Sources

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