The First Domestic 'Individual, Large Donation' Former Mirae Industry Chairman Jeong Moon-sul Passes Away (Comprehensive)

Jeong Moon-sul, former chairman of Mirae Industry, who donated a total of 51.5 billion KRW to KAIST in two installments with the promise of "not passing down wealth," has passed away.

According to KAIST on the 13th, Jeong passed away from an illness at around 9:30 p.m. the previous day. He was 86 years old.

Jeong Mun-sul, former chairman of Mirae Industry, is expressing his thoughts at the donation agreement ceremony to KAIST in 2014. Photo by Yonhap News

Born in 1938 in Gangjin-myeon, Imsil-gun, Jeonbuk Province, he graduated from Namseong High School. During his military service, he experienced the May 16 coup and worked as a practical member in charge of personnel and general affairs of the revolutionary army before being specially recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency in 1962.

In May 1980, while serving as the Planning and Coordination Manager of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Policy Office, he was dismissed when the Security Command took control.

After his dismissal, he faced difficulties including being scammed while preparing for business, and the mold company Pungjeon Gikong, which he had painstakingly established, was forced to close within a year due to obstruction by large corporations.

However, in 1983, he founded Mirae Industry, a venture semiconductor equipment manufacturing company, marking a turning point. By recruiting engineers retired from Japan, he developed semiconductor inspection equipment and succeeded in domestic production, leading to business growth.

His interest in semiconductors began in 1970 when he visited Japan while working at the Central Intelligence Agency and saw the letters "IC" on Toshiba’s transistor shortwave radio. He left an anecdote related to this in his book Why Despair Already? (1998).

In his book, he wrote about how he lost all the money he had earned through business while attempting to develop unmanned inspection equipment, was chased by private loans, and even once decided on a joint family suicide. This passage reflects the many hardships he faced throughout his life.

However, after regaining his footing with a type of semiconductor equipment called the "memory test handler," he boldly invested research and development funds exceeding sales during the International Monetary Fund (IMF) economic crisis. In 1999, he succeeded in developing the "SMD mounter," a basic electronic product manufacturing equipment previously monopolized by advanced countries, marking his comeback.

Later, in November 1999, he took Mirae Industry public on NASDAQ, the first domestic company to do so, earning the title of "first-generation venture entrepreneur." He stepped down from management in 2001, reportedly leaving the message to "create a good company."

Notably, Jeong was also known for not allowing his two sons to get involved in the company (Mirae Industry). In his book Beautiful Management: The Reverse Life Philosophy of a Venture Godfather (2004), he stated, "A corporation is not the personal property of the president, so the president has no right to pass management rights to the second generation."

He also emphasized, "As history teaches, 'hereditary power' mostly fails." Just before stepping down from management, when he called his two sons and asked for their understanding by saying, "Unfortunately, Mirae Industry is not mine. I cannot pass it down personally," the sons replied, "Father, you have left us a spiritual legacy. We will always be proud of you," as recorded in his book.

It is widely known that Jeong donated 30 billion KRW in 2001 and 21.5 billion KRW in 2013 to KAIST during his lifetime, contributing to the establishment of the Department of Bio and Brain Engineering and the Moon Sul Future Strategy Graduate School. He was the first individual in Korea to make such a large personal donation.

In particular, at the donation agreement ceremony on January 10, 2014, he attracted attention by stating, "I decided on this donation because of my desire to contribute to designing the future of the Republic of Korea and my personal promise not to pass down wealth."

He also said, "This donation was a victory in my personal battle with myself, and at the same time, a precious opportunity to keep my promise to myself, which makes me very happy."

Jeong served as chairman of KAIST from 2009 to 2013 and was selected as one of Forbes' "48 Philanthropists in Asia-Pacific" in 2014. He also received the Order of Science and Technology Merit, Changjo Medal, for his contributions to the advancement of science and technology.

Meanwhile, his funeral is being held in Room 202 of Konkuk University Funeral Hall. The funeral procession will take place at 9 a.m. on the 15th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.