This Week in Webtoon-ish, August 2nd

Let's talk a bit about AI.

The hometown of Korea’s manhwa industry unveils talks to promote AI webtoon production while the Korean government makes good on tax breaks for webtoons and generative AI industries.

Bucheon City and Webtoon Association of Korea Promote AI Webtoon Production Program

On July 29th, ET News reported that representatives of Bucheon City and along with the President of the Webtoon Association here in Korea held a meeting to discuss the necessity of establishing an AI-based webtoon creation platform. While there are multiple initiatives in multiple other cities and districts, the significance of this one cannot be overstated. Bucheon City was where the manhwa and animation industries were based for a long time before branching out to places like Panggyo and Gangnam.

Source: ET News

Naver Webtoon Prepares “Cuts” for Launch in September

Naver’s worst kept secret, a short-form video platform called “Cuts”, has been slated for a September 2025 launch. This will be Naver’s in-house short-video content platform geared specifically towards webtoon content.

Source: Anime News Network

Korea Increases Tax Cuts for Multiple Industries Including AI R&D and Webtoon Production

The new presidential administration in Korea has put their money where their mouth is by increasing tax reduction rates for multiple fields including webtoon production, video production, and AI R&D. This is seen as a move to increase cultural exports directly while also increasing Korea’s competitiveness in the generative AI industry.

Source: Chosun Biz

Naver’s Q2 Expectations Rise While Kakao’s Fall

In Q2, Naver’s founder returned to company management while Kakao’s stepped away due to health concerns. This is expected to have contributed to the expected 11% YoY increase for Naver while Kakao is predicted to see a 5.3% YoY decrease.

Source: Chosun Biz