Coupang names Park Dae-jun sole CEO

CEO Park Dae-jun

Coupang appointed Park Dae-jun as its sole CEO, transitioning from the previous co-CEO structure that included Kang Han-seung. Along with overseeing the company’s overall management, Park will also assume the role of board chairman, the company said on Monday.

Park’s leadership marks a strategic shift as Coupang accelerates its investments in artificial intelligence (AI)-powered logistics and automation technologies. The company set a bold goal of expanding Rocket Delivery coverage to 100 percent of South Korea by 2027 - an initiative referred to internally as achieving full “Coupang zones” nationwide.

“Over the past four years, our co-CEO system with Kang Han-seung leading corporate management and Park Dae-jun overseeing new businesses has served us well. However, we are now moving to a sole-CEO structure to enhance operational alignment,” Coupang said in a statement, adding that Park will soon be formally appointed as chairman of the board.

Park is widely known as the “original Coupang man” for his pivotal role in shaping the company’s logistics innovation and has become its longest-serving executive since joining Coupang in 2012. He was promoted to vice president in charge of policy in 2019 and became head of new business in 2021.

Park spearheaded the launch of Rocket Delivery in 2014 - the first of its kind in Korea - and led the rollout of more than 100 AI-enhanced fulfillment centers across 30 regions. Industry insiders often describe him as the executive who “understands Coupang Inc. Chairman Bom Kim better than anyone.”

One industry official noted that “at a time when Rocket Delivery was being dismissed as a financial black hole, Park helped Coupang navigate its toughest years and lay the foundation for future growth - even as accumulated losses topped 6 trillion won ($4.38 billion).”

From the company’s startup days, Park worked closely with government ministries and local municipalities to establish AI-based fulfillment centers across Korea. Over the past 13 years, he has extended Coupang’s logistics infrastructure from the Seoul metropolitan area to Jeolla, Gyeongsang, Chungcheong, and even Jeju Island - creating more than 80,000 jobs in the process.

Coupang is also intensifying its AI efforts. Its global patent portfolio has expanded from 160 in 2019 to over 2,100 by the end of 2024. Coupang was named one of the “Top 100 Global Innovators” by patent analytics firm LexisNexis in 2024.

During a fourth-quarter earnings call in 2024, Chairman Bom Kim said, “AI and robotics - capable of performing trillions of predictive operations daily - will drive the next wave of growth.”

Park is expected to further strengthen regional logistics and AI capabilities. At the groundbreaking ceremony for Coupang’s Jecheon Advanced Logistics Center in March 2025, he stated that, “we will continue investing in AI-powered logistics infrastructure to foster local job creation and help small businesses grow.”

Under Park’s leadership, Coupang is also expanding its support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), particularly in rural areas. A flagship initiative is the “Kind Store,” a permanent exhibition platform launched in August 2022 with 24 government and local partners, including the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. The platform had surpassed 3 trillion won in cumulative sales and helped over 12,000 Korean SMEs expand into Taiwan’s Rocket Delivery ecosystem as of early 2025.

Meanwhile, former co-CEO Kang Han-seung will transition to lead Coupang’s business development initiatives in North America.