Han Seong-sook, widely known for her role in building Naver into South Korea’s largest internet portal, has been appointed Minister of Small and Medium Enterprises and Startups. Her nomination by President Lee Jae-myung was confirmed on 23rd June.
Han, who played a key role at Naver from its early NHN days, brings decades of experience in the digital and IT sector to her new role. She is considered a pioneer in Korea’s technology industry and becomes the latest high-profile appointment in President Lee’s push to accelerate digital innovation across government portfolios.
President Lee had earlier named Ha Jung-woo as the nation’s first chief of artificial intelligence, and the selection of Han reflects a similar strategy, appointing leaders with strong private-sector expertise in AI and digital platforms. This move signals a shift in focus from traditional policy support towards using innovation as the main engine for growth in the SME sector.
An official from the Presidential Office commented, “Based on abundant field experience and a deep understanding of the industry, we will add newness to the strategies for nurturing small and medium enterprises.”
Han began her tech career as a founding member at Empas, where she led the Search Business Division and introduced ‘Open Search’, a system that displayed results from other portals’ databases. She later joined NHN, Naver’s predecessor, overseeing the Quality Search Centre before moving up to manage the Service Department.
She was appointed as the first female CEO of Naver in 2017 and held the post until 2022. During her tenure, she oversaw several major changes to Naver’s content services, including the removal of first-screen news, the elimination of real-time search terms, and adjustments to the platform’s comment system. She also launched VIBE, a personalised AI-powered music recommendation service.
After stepping down as CEO when Choi Soo-yeon took over in 2022, Han moved to Europe to lead Naver’s business development strategy in the region. She left the post in March 2024 and transitioned into an advisory role within the company.
With her appointment, Han continues a trend of women heading the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, following in the footsteps of previous ministers Oh Young-ju, Park Young-sun (under Moon Jae-in), and Lee Young (under Yoon Suk-yeol).
