[Edaily Reporter Lee So-hyun] Naver (#NAVER) is launching a creator fellowship program to help users better discover creators’ experiences and expertise in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).

Naver announced on the 4th that it has launched the "Naver Mate" program to explore content directions that can create synergy with AI in collaboration with creators.

Naver Mate is a program that highlights creators active on Naver’s user-generated content (UGC) services—such as blogs, cafes, Knowledge iN, and Premium Content—who possess subject-specific expertise and diversity.

Naver will announce approximately 3,000 creators each month based on the number of AI briefing citations across 10 major categories—including travel, lifestyle, and tech—and 25 sub-topics such as health, parenting, movies, and automobiles.

Naver believes that as AI rapidly organizes information and transforms content production methods, the importance of creators’ firsthand experiences and long-accumulated records is growing. The company also believes that a trustworthy creator content ecosystem is necessary to improve the quality of AI responses.

Naver plans to operate Naver Mate in beta form this year and refine the program by incorporating feedback from creators. In the future, it will expand the scope to include Clip creators, supporting UGC creators across various formats—including text, images, and video—so they can thrive within the AI content ecosystem.

This afternoon, Naver will launch the official Naver Mate page and announce the first Naver Mate creators by topic. The initial recipients are creators with high AI Briefing citation counts in their respective fields.

Creators selected as Naver Mates will have an official emblem displayed on their profiles and content. Users will be able to easily find Naver Mate content across Naver services, including the unified search and AI Briefing.

From the creators’ perspective, this is expected to help them establish themselves as subject-matter experts, thereby enhancing their credibility and expertise, while also expanding growth opportunities through features like following, paid subscriptions, and joining cafes.

To support creators’ activities, Naver will also provide an annual activity support fund of approximately 20 billion won. Selected creators will receive a basic monthly stipend of 300,000 won. Additionally, top creators in the top 10 fields will receive 3 million won per month, and the top creator in each field will receive an additional 10 million won per month.

Lee Il-gu, Head of Naver’s Content Services Division, emphasized, “Even in the AI era, we will encourage creators to produce better content and strengthen an ecosystem where high-quality content rich in human experience and context is consistently produced.” He added, “We will explore new content directions that create synergy with AI so that this trend can further enhance creators’ influence and revenue.”