Kakao Corp.

South Korean Internet Conglomerate and Digital Platform ServicesFounded 2006- HQ today: Jeju City, South Korea

Founders

Who Founded Kakao?

Beom-soo Kim · Founded 2006 · HQ today: Jeju City, South Korea

Who founded Kakao?

Kakao was founded by Beom-soo Kim in 2006. It is now led by Shina Chung.

Founders: Beom-soo Kim
Founded: 2006
Headquarters: Jeju City, South Korea
Number of founders: 1
Current CEO: Shina Chung (since 2024)

Where was Kakao founded?: Kakao was founded in Seoul, South Korea in 2006.
When was Kakao founded?: Kakao was founded in 2006.
Who started Kakao?: Kakao was founded by Beom-soo Kim.
How old is Kakao?: Kakao is 20 years old as of 2026.

Founding Story

Kim Beom-su co-founded the game portal Hangame, which merged with Naver to form NHN, and left NHN in 2007. He had founded IWILAB in December 2006, and after the iPhone reached Korea the team launched KakaoTalk in March 2010 as a free alternative to paid SMS. It spread quickly, and the company was renamed Kakao in September 2010. In October 2014 Kakao merged with Daum Communications, the portal founded by Lee Jae-woong in 1995, forming Daum Kakao, which was renamed Kakao Corp. in 2015.

Beom-soo Kim

Co-founder 2006

Background

Kim Beom-su (Brian Kim) co-founded the online game portal Hangame in 1998, which merged with Naver to form NHN, where he served as co-CEO before leaving in 2007. He founded IWILAB in 2006, which launched KakaoTalk in 2010 and became Kakao.

Role at Kakao Corp.

Kim Beom-su studied industrial engineering at Seoul National University and worked at Samsung SDS before starting Hangame. After NHN he founded IWILAB, whose team launched KakaoTalk in March 2010 as a free, data-based alternative to paid SMS. He led Kakao through the 2014 Daum merger and its expansion into payments, mobility, and content, stepped back from day-to-day management, and in 2021 pledged to give away more than half of his wealth, joining The Giving Pledge. He remains Kakao's largest shareholder (13.27% as of June 2026, with friendly stakes via K Cube Holdings bringing the total to about 24%) and heads its CA council's Future Initiative Center. He was arrested in July 2024 over alleged SM Entertainment share manipulation, acquitted at first instance in October 2025, and faces an appeal verdict in November 2026. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).

Kakao Corp.: CEO & Leadership History

Full timeline →

Shina Chung

Chief Executive Officer

2024 – Present

Kakao posted record FY2025 revenue and operating profit under her leadership. She is slated to lead Kakao AI after the split.

Hong Eun-taek

Chief Executive Officer

2022 – 2024

He leads the company's severe internal restructuring efforts, attempting to repair Kakao's deeply damaged reputation regarding platform stability and monopolistic practices.

Namkoong Whon

Co-Chief Executive Officer

2022 – 2022

Prior to his brief tenure as CEO, he aggressively expanded Kakao's highly lucrative gaming division, establishing the company as a major publisher in the South Korean mobile market.

Keep researching Kakao

Who Founded Kakao? FAQ

Who founded Kakao and in what year was KakaoTalk established?

Kakao was founded in 2006 by Kim Beom-soo (Brian Kim) under the original corporate name IWI Lab in Seoul, officially launching the major KakaoTalk mobile messaging app on March 18, 2010.

What was Kim Beom-soo's background before founding Kakao?

Born into an impoverished family where eight people shared a single room in Seoul, Kim Beom-soo worked his way through Seoul National University, founded online gaming pioneer Hangame in 1998, and served as CEO of NHN (Naver) before leaving in 2007 to start IWI Lab.

What was the smartphone revolution moment that inspired the creation of KakaoTalk in 2009 to 2010?

In late 2009, when the Apple iPhone officially launched in South Korea, Brian Kim recognized that mobile smartphones would replace PC internet portals. He challenged three small engineering teams at IWI Lab to develop mobile-first apps, and the 4-person team behind KakaoTalk struck gold.

What was the '100 Million Users' breakthrough of KakaoTalk in its early years?

KakaoTalk offered free messaging over mobile data when Korean carriers charged per text, and it spread quickly to become the default messenger in South Korea.

When did Kakao merge with Daum?

Kakao merged with Daum Communications in October 2014, forming Daum Kakao. The company was renamed Kakao Corp. in 2015 and later moved its listing from KOSDAQ to the KOSPI market.

How did the founders pioneer mobile gaming distribution with 'Kakao Game' in 2012?

In 2012, Kakao launched 'Game Center on Kakao,' allowing mobile game developers to integrate KakaoTalk friend lists for competitive leaderboards and heart-sending social mechanics, spawning viral megahits like Anipang and creating the Korean mobile gaming industry.

Did Kim Beom-su join The Giving Pledge?

Yes. In 2021 Kim pledged to donate more than half of his wealth and joined The Giving Pledge, and he set up the Brian Impact Foundation.

How is the founding culture of Kakao preserved today?

Kakao's startup culture is famous for radical equality: employees communicate in open-plan offices, reject traditional Korean age and hierarchical honorifics, and address each other exclusively by English nicknames (e.g., Brian, Shina, Mason).

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