Samsung Electronics CEO Han Jong-hee dies of heart attack

Tech giant names Jun Young-hyun as sole CEO

By Nam Hyun-woo

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman and CEO Han Jong-hee died of a heart attack, the company said Tuesday. He was 63.

According to the company and industry sources, Han suffered a heart attack while resting over the weekend. He was taken to Samsung Medical Center in southern Seoul but died early Tuesday.

Han had a busy schedule in recent weeks. After holding the company’s annual general meeting of shareholders on March 19, he visited Shanghai for the 2025 Appliance & Electronics World Expo and held a series of meetings with local clients.

He was set to introduce Samsung Electronics’ new artificial intelligence (AI)-embedded household appliances during a presentation event slated for Wednesday. The company has reportedly selected another executive as the keynote speaker for the event.

His funeral ceremony will be held at the medical center until Thursday. He is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.

Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong will not attend Han’s funeral ceremony as he is in China, meeting with local industry leaders.

"Chairman Lee expressed his deep regret over being unable to attend the memorial ceremony in person due to his schedule in China," the company said in a statement. "He extends his heartfelt condolences and sympathy to the bereaved family."

Born in 1962, Han is a TV and display specialist, playing a crucial role in helping Samsung maintain its position as the world’s No. 1 TV brand for 19 consecutive years.

After graduating from Inha University’s Department of Electronic Engineering, Han started his career at Samsung Electronics in 1988, serving in key positions within the company’s visual display division and overseeing its TV business.

He was promoted to visual display division’s president in 2017 and was promoted to vice chairman in 2021 as the head of the Device Experience (DX) division, overseeing TV, home appliance and smartphone businesses.

During his 37 years at the company, Samsung overtook Japan’s Sony in the global TV market and became the world’s largest TV manufacturer in 2006. Since then, the company has been maintaining its leadership position in the global TV market, with a product range that includes PDPs, LCDs and OLED TVs.

He was appointed co-CEO of Samsung Electronics in March 2022, along with former President Kyung Kye-hyun, and led the company as the sole CEO from 2024 until March 19, when Vice Chairman Jun Young-hyun of the chip division became co-CEO during the shareholders' meeting.

After becoming CEO, Han focused on exploring the company’s future growth drivers. He set AI as the company’s direction for sustainable growth, emphasizing the actual experiences that consumers can have when using Samsung’s AI-powered appliances.

Last year, he set a goal to achieve "a strong growth" in four future growth sectors: medical technology, robotics, automotive components and eco-friendly air conditioning.

During the shareholder meeting, Han apologized to shareholders about the company’s sluggish stock price and addressed concerns surrounding the company’s future as a leading tech company, saying the company will make “painstaking efforts” to restore its “technological competitiveness this year.”

“The late vice chairman led Samsung to the No. 1 position in the global TV market,” Samsung said in a text message. “Despite challenging internal and external conditions, Han devoted himself fully to his role as head of the Digital Appliances division.”

Samsung said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that Vice Chairman Jun became the company’s sole CEO, due to Han’s death. This came just six days after the company appointed Jun as the co-CEO in an apparent effort to assist Han’s mission to restore Samsung’s competitiveness.

Han is remembered as “a persistent and steady leader,” among industry officials, as he was far from being flashy but always finishes his job. A Samsung official said Han had always been stressing “products’ quality,” which led the company to establish a quality innovation committee last year.

Cho Joo-wan, CEO of Samsung's home appliance rival LG Electronics, expressed his condolences for Han's death after LG's shareholders' meeting on Tuesday.

"Han made tremendous efforts for the progress of Korea's electronics industry and committed himself more than anyone else to Samsung during the past 37 years," Cho said.