HONG KONG – Han Jong-Hee, co-CEO of South Korean tech big Samsung Electronics, has died on the age of 63, the corporate confirmed on Tuesday. A spokesperson for Samsung said that his dying was as a consequence of cardiac arrest.
Born in 1962, Han had been a key determine at Samsung, overseeing its client electronics and cell units companies since 2022. In the identical yr, he was appointed as Samsung Electronics vice chairman and CEO. His passing comes shortly after the appointment of Jun Younger-Hyun as co-CEO final week.
Following Han’s dying, Jun Younger-Hyun, who has been main Samsung’s semiconductor enterprise, will now assume the position of the corporate’s sole CEO, in keeping with the spokesperson.
In an inside message obtained by CNN, Samsung paid tribute to Han, recognizing his over 37 years of dedication to the corporate. The message highlighted his pivotal position in reworking Samsung’s TV enterprise into a world chief and his contributions to the expansion of its electronics and home equipment divisions amidst a difficult financial local weather. “Our deepest condolences are along with his household and family members throughout this tough time,” the corporate said.
Han’s passing comes at a time when Samsung Electronics has confronted important headwinds. Its logic semiconductor enterprise lags behind trade chief Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Firm (TSMC), and its reminiscence chip enterprise, historically a energy, has reportedly fallen behind South Korean rival Hynix within the essential excessive bandwidth reminiscence (HBM) know-how market. This lag has contributed to latest declines in Samsung’s share worth.
Throughout an annual investor assembly final week, chaired by Han, he had apologized for the corporate’s inventory efficiency and cautioned a couple of tough 2025, citing uncertainties in main economies’ financial insurance policies. He additionally indicated Samsung’s intent to pursue “significant” mergers and acquisitions this yr to bolster progress, acknowledging the challenges within the semiconductor sector as a consequence of regulatory points and nationwide pursuits.
Han joined Samsung in 1988 after graduating with a bachelor’s diploma in electrical engineering from Inha College. Previous to his position as co-CEO, he led the corporate’s show operation and was credited with being “central” to the rollout of Samsung’s LED TVs, amongst different improvements that helped the corporate preserve its “know-how management,” in keeping with a Samsung biography printed final week.
