Former Naver CEO Han Seong-suk./Courtesy of Naver

Former Naver CEO Han Seong-suk has been appointed as the Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups. She is a figure who has been with Naver’s growth since his time at NHN.

President Lee Jae-myung nominated former CEO Han as the candidate for Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups on the 23rd. Han, who has been chosen as the first Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups, is known as a first-generation expert in the information and communication (IT) sector, having played a significant role in the growth of Korea’s largest portal site, Naver.

President Lee appointed Ha Jung-woo, head of the Naver Cloud AI Innovation Center, as the first Chief of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and then selected former CEO Han as the appropriate candidate for Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups. He has recruited individuals with expertise in private sector AI and digital fields as well as platform experience. This is interpreted as the government’s determination to lead digital innovation growth rather than merely a support role.

An official from the presidential office said, “Based on rich field experience and a deep understanding of the industry, she will add new perspectives to the ministry’s growth strategy for small and medium enterprises.”

So far, the Ministers of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups have mainly been former politicians, including Park Young-sun and Kwon Chil-seung. The previous Minister, Oh Youngju, was the only one with a bureaucratic background. Minister Lee Young was a venture entrepreneur but became a member of the National Assembly in 2020 as a proportional representation candidate.

Former CEO Han joined as a founding member of the portal site Empas and served as the head of the search business headquarters, where she devised the “Open Search” feature that displayed search results from other portals' databases.

She later moved to NHN, the predecessor of Naver, where she oversaw the quality of search services and managed the service headquarters, taking charge of the overall services. From 2017, she served as CEO of Naver for six years until 2022, leading the company’s growth.

During this time, former CEO Han proposed improvements to the news service, which included deleting the first-screen news, removing real-time search terms, and changing the comment system. She also launched the recommendation engine VIBE, which recommends music based on users' personal preferences powered by artificial intelligence technology.

She stepped down from the CEO position when Choi Soo-yeon took over in 2022 and took on the role of representative for European business development, focusing on expanding Naver’s presence in the European market. In March, she resigned from her position as European development representative and was appointed as an advisor.

Meanwhile, with the nomination of former CEO Han, the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups is expected to continue the title of ‘female minister’ following Park Young-sun, Lee Young, and Oh Youngju.