Naver will acquire France-based Xerox Research Centre Europe (XRCE), the company announced, in a bid to strengthen its AI business and expand in Europe. South Korea's largest search giant this year created a lab to focus on AI research. Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with US chip giant Qualcomm to expand its AI platform, named Clova, which is a joint project with subsidiary and chat giant Line. It partnered with compatriot Mirae Asset Daewoo, Korea's largest brokerage company, to apply AI in financial services. It is also applying AI and machine learning technology to its search and apps. The 80 employees at the research centre will join Naver, with the deal expected to close in the third quarter.