Ki-Jun Kim, CEO and partner at Kakao Ventures, is one of the 100 leading corporate venturing professionals in our 2026 Powerlist.
Ki-Jun Kim is the CEO and one of two partners at Kakao Ventures, which serves as the early-stage venture capital arm of the South Korean internet conglomerate Kakao.
Kim was promoted to CEO in March 2024, having been with the firm since its inception in 2012 as K-Cube Ventures. He replaced GCV Titan Shina Chung who had been CEO of Kakao Ventures for more than a decade before becoming CEO of the whole corporation.
Kim now works closely with Dongwook (Brian) Jang who had been a director since 2014 before being promoted to partner at the start of the year.
Under Kim’s leadership, the firm aims to be a “co-pilot” for founders, focusing on high societal impact rather than short-term financial gains. However, these financial gains are expected as Kakao Ventures manages funds with external capital while remaining wholly owned by the parent.
Through these external commitments, Kakao Ventures has become more founder-facing and less corporately tethered. Decision-making is faster, partner-led and less dependent on Kakao business units. This has increased its credibility among entrepreneurs who might otherwise avoid CVCs due to strategic constraints.
While South Korea-focused, the firm has under Kim expanded into the US, Japan and Germany. It invested in several North American companies including Oligospace and Parallax World in the past year.
But the majority of its portfolio companies, which include Uvify and Dable, are in its homeland, with Dunamu and Cenacle Soft both being acquired by local tech group Naver. Kakao Ventures has doubled down on its “Day 1 investor” identity by leading or co-leading seed and series A rounds, particularly in deep tech, AI infrastructure, biotech and frontier platforms, such as South Korea’s OQT, which is using neutral atoms to develop quantum technology.
The notable shift is increasing thematic coherence: rather than opportunistic early-stage bets, the portfolio is being shaped around long-term platform shifts, such as AI-native software, digital health, and next-gen mobility.
The GCV Powerlist represents the 100 individuals spearheading the future of the corporate venturing industry.
These individuals excel in terms of their venturing approach and structure, number and quality of portfolio companies and in their contributions to the corporate venturing profession.
Here’s a snapshot of their recent deals:
