This year's inventor king is Choi Yun-hwa, the CEO of GMJCo, who developed a high-performance power semiconductor module using dual-sided heat dissipation technology. The Industrial Medal of Honor for merit on Inventors' Day was awarded to Jeon Kyung-hoon, president of Samsung Electronics, for leading research and development in future technologies such as 6G and AI.
The Korean Intellectual Property Office held the 60th Inventors' Day ceremony on the afternoon of the 19th at the Coex Magok Le West Hall, in partnership with the Korea Invention Promotion Association. May 19 was designated as Inventors' Day in 1957, marking the anniversary of the world's first rain gauge invention.
During the ceremony, awards were given for merit on Inventors' Day (80 points), Inventor King of the Year (1 individual), and the special award commemorating the 60th anniversary of Inventors' Day (4 awards).
Choi Yun-hwa, CEO of GMJCo, was selected as this year's Inventor King. CEO Choi is recognized for leading the development of key components for next-generation smart industries such as electric vehicles, automated robots, and e-mobility through high-performance power semiconductor modules utilizing dual-sided heat dissipation technology.
The Industrial Medal of Honor for merit on Inventors' Day was awarded to Jeon Kyung-hoon, president of Samsung Electronics. President Jeon, who serves as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Samsung Electronics' device experience (DX) institutional sector and also as head of Samsung Research, was highly regarded for his contributions to leading research and development in future technologies such as next-generation mobile communication technologies (6G) and artificial intelligence (AI), as well as elevating South Korea's status in the global market.
The Silver Medal of Honor was awarded to Jo Hwi-jae, vice president of LG Electronics, and Seong Nak-seob, executive director of Hyundai Motor.
This year, the 60th Inventors' Day saw the establishment of special awards to recognize individuals who contributed to the diffusion of invention culture through invention promotion, along with commendations from the commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office. The special awards were given to the late Kwon Do-in, the late Kim Yong-gwan, and the late Jeong In-ho. Kwon Do-in was recognized as the first Korean to file a patent in the United States and supported the independence movement with the revenue from a furniture business utilizing inventions such as bamboo curtains. Additionally, Choi Jeong-hee, a researcher at the National Meteorological Museum, received a special award for contributing to the history of the rain gauge invention.
Kim Wan-ki, commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office, noted, "On the 60th anniversary of Inventors' Day and the 80th anniversary of liberation, the Korean Intellectual Property Office will strive to work with inventors so that inventions can connect the past and present and become the driving force for South Korea's bright future."