Shina Chung

Shina Chung took the helm of Kakao, which operates South Korea’s most popular messaging app, in the wake of a governance crisis that saw top executives detained owing to allegations of stock manipulation. She’s since trimmed the company’s sprawling portfolio of subsidiaries and boosted its revenue to $5.6 billion last year, a record high. It also swung back into the black, posting a $360 million profit after a net loss in 2024. Chung has signed a partnership with ChatGPT developer OpenAI to bring its model to KakaoTalk, which has 49 million monthly active users. Shareholders have given Chung their stamp of approval, reappointing her to a second term as CEO in March.