Choi Soo-yeon
Chief Executive Officer
2022 – Present
4 years (current)
Key Decisions & Impact
Choi became CEO in March 2022, Naver's first female chief executive, after first joining the company in 2005 as a public-relations and marketing intern before leaving to study law at Yonsei University and later Harvard Law School. Since becoming CEO she has directed Naver's development of HyperCLOVA X, its Korean-language generative AI model, and has overseen the integration of the Poshmark acquisition into Naver's broader commerce strategy.
Legacy
Her tenure has centered on positioning Naver as a 'sovereign AI' provider for the Korean market and Korean-language enterprise customers, arguing that locally developed AI models better serve Korean linguistic and regulatory needs than offerings from US-based providers such as OpenAI and Google. Choi has also represented Naver in international AI-governance discussions, including her appointment to the UN Global Compact board, reflecting South Korea's broader push to establish itself as a credible independent voice in global AI policy alongside the United States and China.