South Korean billionaire Kim Beom-su to give away half his wealth

South Korean billionaire Kim Beom-su

 

Kim Beom-su, the founder of South Korea's largest mobile communication software KakaoTalk, and one of the billionaires in South Korea, has publicly pledged to donate more than half of his wealth.

"I have pledged to donate more than half of my assets to solve social issues throughout my life," Kim Beom-su said in a message sent to all of Kakao's employees.

Kakao, founded in 2010, has a series of mobile application products, and more than 90% of Korean mobile phone users have installed Kakao's signature communication software.

Kim Beom-su, who started from scratch has an estimated net worth of US$9.4 billion.

According to the US magazine Forbes, during the COVID-19 epidemic last year, Kim Beom-su is said to be South Korea’s “biggest beneficiary.”  His company Kakao benefits from social distancing measures as more people become users of Kakao communication software, e-commerce platforms, and online games.

He said his role model is Bill Gates,
"My role model for solving social problems is Bill Gates.  He started a company and created a foundation, and it first made me realize that a company can do such things, so I have been benchmarking him."

Kim said he is interested in those who prepare for the future, people who lack opportunities due to the digital divide, and talents in artificial intelligence (AI).

"I'm thinking of setting up an AI campus to foster talents," he said. "I want to make a system which people can participate in not only online, but also offline."