Hancom, a pioneering software company, has announced the retirement of its 36-year-old brand "Hangul and Computer" and its identity as a traditional office software provider. The company is transitioning to become a Sovereign Agentic Operating System (OS) firm based on artificial intelligence (AI).
On May 19, Hancom held a strategy presentation titled "Hancom: The Shift" at the Fairmont Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, where it unveiled its AI business achievements and new corporate vision.
Kim Yeon-soo, CEO of Hancom, stated, "As of today, Hancom is officially transitioning to a Sovereign Agentic OS company. We have demonstrated our shift to an AI company through our results, and now we will take it a step further."
The company has changed its name from "Hangul and Computer" to "Hancom" to reflect its expanded business scope, which now includes data, AI agents, and global markets. The previous name no longer encapsulates the current vision.
Hancom will cease the release of traditional software packages with the launch of "Hancom Office 2024." Instead, it plans to shift to a platform structure that updates AI features in real time.
Kim emphasized, "We cannot keep pace with the speed of AI evolution through annual product releases. Hancom's core business is not document tool manufacturing but AI technology development."
The Sovereign Agentic OS is an AI operating platform that integrates and controls internal company data, external AI models, and existing work systems within a single environment. This approach aims to respond to market changes that emphasize the evolution of AI agents capable of performing tasks autonomously and the importance of data sovereignty and security.
For the first time, Hancom also disclosed its AI business performance. Last year, its standalone revenue reached 175.3 billion won, a 10.2% increase from the previous year, marking its highest performance to date. Of the total revenue increase of 16.2 billion won, approximately 8.9 billion won, or 54.6%, came from the AI package business.
This year, the share of AI business is expanding even more rapidly. In the first quarter, AI revenue reached 5.2 billion won, accounting for 11.2% of total revenue. Hancom stated, "We are already a company generating profits from AI."
Hancom has established a customer base of approximately 200,000 organizations, including 14,000 public and government agencies, 40,000 educational institutions, and 140,000 private companies, which it views as a key asset for expanding its AI business. Among its B2B customers, the adoption rate of AI packages was 4.2% in the first quarter of this year.
The company believes this customer base will also serve as a strength in the emerging Agentic OS market. Since existing customers have already entrusted sensitive document data and work environments to Hancom's platform, the new AI agent services are expected to be quickly adopted.
Hancom is also targeting the European market, focusing on data sovereignty regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the EU AI Act. The company plans to expand collaborations with local IT and public sector firms in Europe.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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