Han Jong Hee

Samsung Electronics co-CEO Han Jong-Hee passed away from cardiac arrest on Tuesday at the age of 63, the company confirmed. Han, who had been with Samsung for over 37 years, played a key role in leading its consumer electronics and mobile devices businesses, particularly its TV division.

Appointed vice chairman and CEO in 2022, Han had been instrumental in maintaining Samsung’s global leadership in the consumer electronics sector. His co-CEO, Jun Young-Hyun, who was appointed last week, will now serve as the sole CEO of the company.

In an internal statement, Samsung expressed deep condolences and acknowledged Han’s contributions, particularly in steering the company through a challenging business environment.

Han’s passing comes at a difficult time for Samsung, which faces increasing competition in the semiconductor industry. While its contract chipmaking division lags behind Taiwan’s TSMC in advanced semiconductor production, its memory business has also fallen behind South Korean rival Hynix in high-bandwidth memory (HBM) technology, crucial for AI-driven graphics processing.

Just last week, Han chaired Samsung’s annual investor meeting, where he apologised for the company’s stock performance and warned of economic uncertainties in 2025. He also emphasised plans for “meaningful” mergers and acquisitions to drive growth despite regulatory challenges.

Han joined Samsung in 1988 after earning a degree in electrical engineering from Inha University and played a pivotal role in the development of LED TVs, reinforcing Samsung’s position as a global technology leader.