Young Sohn

In today's world, Young Sohn plays a fundamental role in various areas of society. Whether on a personal, professional or social level, Young Sohn has become increasingly relevant over time. Its influence is present in decision making, the development of new technologies, the expansion of knowledge and the creation of opportunities. In this article we will explore the importance of Young Sohn and its impact on different aspects of modern life, analyzing its effects and possible implications for the future. Likewise, we will also consider the multiple perspectives that exist around Young Sohn, evidencing its complexity and importance in a constantly changing world.

Young Sohn
Sohn at the 2018 Web Summit
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of Pennsylvania
MIT Sloan School of Management
Known forFormer President of Samsung Electronics
Korean name
Hangul
손영권
Revised RomanizationSon Yeonggwon
McCune–ReischauerSon Yŏngkwŏn

Young Sohn (Korean: 손영권) is a Korean-American tech executive, entrepreneur, and venture investor focused on deep tech, AI, robotics, and next-gen computing. He is a founding managing partner at Walden Catalyst Ventures,[1] an early-stage venture capital firm investing globally in deep tech across AI, semiconductors and robotics. Sohn is also the Chairman of HARMAN International,[2] and serves on the board of Cadence Design Systems and ARM.[3]

He was formerly President and Chief Strategy Officer of Samsung Electronics, [4][5] where he led the company’s strategic push into automotive, AI, cloud and infrastructure. Sohn was instrumental in Samsung’s $8B acquisition of HARMAN, and launched the Samsung Strategy and Innovation Center. [6][7]

He has been called "the best-connected chip executive in the semiconductor industry."[8]

Early life and education

Sohn was born in Seoul and grew up in Bowie, Maryland. Sohn holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.S. from MIT Sloan School of Management.[9]

Operator, Builder & Scaler

Sohn began his career at Intel, where he launched the PC chipset business and brokered Intel’s first JV with Samsung. [9] He also formed the company's inaugural joint venture with Samsung Electronics.[10] He held the President role at Quantum Corporation, Agilent Semiconductor (now Broadcom) and Oak Technology, where he led strategic pivots and successful exits. As CEO of Inphi Corporation, Sohn guided the company to a successful IPO in 2010, cementing its role in high-speed data infrastructure. [11] He also served as senior advisor at Silver Lake Partners.[11]

Sohn joined Intel as a product marketing manager and later became its director of new business development. As director of new business development, Sohn oversaw the creation of Intel's PC chipset business.[9] He also formed the company's inaugural joint venture with Samsung Electronics.[10] Sohn was Vice President of Marketing, and later, Co-President of Quantum Corporation. He was also appointed president of the company's Storage Group.[12] Sohn was a chairman and chief executive officer at Oak Technology, a digital media semiconductor company. During his time with the company, he oversaw the acquisition by Zoran Corporation.[11] [13]

Samsung: Scaling Innovation Across Sectors

Joining Samsung Electronics in 2012, Young Sohn became the company’s President and led global corporate strategy. He founded the Samsung Strategy and Innovation Center (SSIC), where he launched major initiatives across frontier technologies, including the Samsung Catalyst Fund, with investments across cloud and data infrastructure, biotech, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, sensors, networking & 5G. [14]

Sohn also created the Samsung CEO Summit, a global forum designed to connect corporate leaders with the startup ecosystem and emerging technologies shaping the future. [15]

Venture Investing & Walden Catalyst

Young Sohn is the co-founder and Managing Partner of Walden Catalyst Ventures, a venture capital firm helping early-stage companies in the U.S., Europe, and Israel build the next generation of category-defining deep tech businesses. He co-founded the firm with Lip-Bu Tan, a legendary investor and semiconductor visionary who is now CEO of Intel and former CEO of Cadence Design Systems. Together, Sohn and Tan bring unmatched global experience—having invested in over 600 startups, with 138 IPOs across semiconductors, AI, software infrastructure, and robotics. Their shared vision is to back breakthrough technologies with long-term impact and to guide exceptional founders through scale. Walden Catalyst focuses on deep tech, with a team of innovators, founders, and operators who are deeply passionate about disruption and excellence. Portfolio companies benefit from unparalleled access to: Hands-on operational expertise from seasoned executives, a powerful global network across Silicon Valley, Asia, Europe, and Israel Select investments include: AI21 Labs, Anybotics, Rivos, Artera, Greenstone, Nearfield Instruments. Sohn plays an active role in helping founders think globally from day one—bridging ecosystems and accelerating innovation at the intersection of AI, computing, robotics, and energy. Some notable past investments include Zoom, Noom, Sambanova, Habana Labs, Credo, TTTech, Ring, Sound Hound, Preventice Solution, Ada Health, Dark Trace, and IonQ.

Philanthropy & Global Tech Ecosystem Leadership

Sohn co-founded the Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC), the world’s largest startup competition aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). XTC helps mission-driven founders gain global visibility and access capital, mentoring, and partnerships (https://extremetechchallenge.org/). [16] He also interviewed luminary leaders from the world of tech, finance, startups, non-profits and beyond to share their perspective on leadership and key trends. (https://waldencatalyst.com/the-next-wave)

Recognition & Legacy

Trail Blazer Award, Asia America Multitechnology Association Corporate Leader Award, Korean American Community Foundation of San Francisco Recognized globally as a connector of entrepreneurs, corporates, and capital across continents

References

  1. ^ "Young Sohn | Walden Catalyst".
  2. ^ "Board of Directors | HARMAN".
  3. ^ "Arm Announces Appointment of Young Sohn to its Board of Directors".
  4. ^ Premack, Rachel. "Why Samsung Thinks The Key To Its Future (And Profits) Could Be In The Auto Sector". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  5. ^ "Young Sohn". Harman. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  6. ^ "Samsung to buy car tech company Harman for $8 billion". Reuters (in French). 2016-11-15. Archived from the original on February 2, 2019. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  7. ^ "Samsung enters autonomous driving race with new business, funding". Reuters. 2017-09-14. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  8. ^ Clarke, Peter. "London Calling: The best-connected chip executive". EETimes. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  9. ^ a b c Rogers, Bruce. "Helping a Korean Electronics Giant Stay Nimble". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  10. ^ a b Leber, Jessica. "Why Samsung's Man in Silicon Valley Uses Apple Devices". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  11. ^ a b c Clarke, Peter. "Young Sohn joins venture capital startup". EETimes. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  12. ^ "Personnel File". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  13. ^ Clarke, Peter. "Inphi IPO raises $81.6 million". EETimes. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  14. ^ Lilien, Niv (2015-03-05). "Inside Samsung's innovation center: The Israel hub hothousing the next big thing in tech". Zdnet. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  15. ^ Su, Jean Baptiste. "Samsung Details Investment Strategy At Third Annual CEO Summit In San Francisco". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
  16. ^ Cohen, Jeff (16 July 2020). "Extreme Tech Challenge Looked for Tomorrow's Startup Stars, Says Samsung President". Cheddar. Retrieved 2020-07-28.