Saeju Jeong
{{short description|South Korean entrepreneur (born 1981)}}{{Infobox person
| name = Saeju Jeong
| image =
| image_caption =
| native_name = {{nobold|정세주}}
| native_name_lang = ko
| other_names =
| birth_date = {{Birth year|1981}}
| birth_place = South Korea
| education = Hongik University (BEng)
| occupation = Business executive
| years_active = 2001–present
| title = Executive Chairman of Noom (2023–present)
| children =
}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
Jeong Saeju ({{Korean|hangul=정세주}}; born 1981){{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Erin Geiger |date=2014-07-16 |title=What Saeju Jeong, tech entrepreneur, packs when traveling on business |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-saeju-jeong-tech-entrepreneur-packs-when-traveling-on-business-1405551977 |access-date=2025-04-01 |work=Wall Street Journal |language=en-US |issn=0099-9660}} is an American entrepreneur and a co-founder, chairman, and the former CEO of Noom, a weight loss company.{{Cite web |last=Kim |first=Min-soo |date=2020-02-23 |title=[미국이 주목하는 ‘코리안 파워’] 정세주 눔 대표 |url=https://jmagazine.joins.com/forbes/view/329260 |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Forbes}}
Early life and education
Jeong was born in 1981, in South Korea, to a family of doctors. In 2001, he founded BuyHard Productions, an independent music label with a focus on heavy metal.{{Cite web |date=18 March 2022 |title=How Saeju Jeong went from heavy metal music to building a health app |url=https://www.theceomagazine.com/business/health-wellbeing/nooms-saeju-jeong/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=The CEO Magazine |language=en-US}} In 2002, he joined the Republic of Korea Army as an IT specialist. He pursued a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Hongik University,{{Cite news |last=Foster |first=Tom |title=How Noom's Founders Shook Up a $250 Billion Industry With a Pandemic Hit That Took 10 Years to Build |url=https://www.inc.com/magazine/202112/tom-foster/noom-weight-loss-behavior-app-saeju-jeong-artem-petakov.html |access-date=April 1, 2025 |work=Inc.}} but in 2005,{{Cite web |last=Cho |first=Yong-tak |date=2017-01-23 |title=[POWER LEADER 2030] 정세주 눔 대표 |url=https://jmagazine.joins.com/forbes/view/315248 |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Forbes}} he dropped out to move to Manhattan, New York.{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Seo-hee |date=2023-09-18 |title='美 최고 헬스케어 스타트업' 키운 정세주 눔 창업자 "또 다른 혁신 위해 CEO 물러난다" |url=https://www.hankookilbo.com/News/Read/A2023091608040000804 |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=한국일보 |language=ko}}{{Cite web |last=Sell |first=Sarah Skidmore |date=2021-06-14 |title=Noom CEO talks life goals, weight loss and heavy metal |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/noom-ceo-talks-life-goals-weight-loss-and-heavy-metal/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=The Seattle Times |language=en-US}}
Career
In Harlem, Jeong met Noom co-founder Artem Petakov. In 2007, the two established WorkSmart Labs and itsfirst prototype, a stationary-bike accessory. Jeong worked various sales jobs and as a food delivery driver.{{Cite web |last=Noh |first=Yu-seon |date=2025-01-23 |title=정세주 눔 의장 - 사람을 이해하는 기술 |url=https://jmagazine.joins.com/forbes/view/340691 |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Forbes}}
In 2011, WorkSmart rebranded to Noom and raised a US$2.6 million seed round led by Kleiner Perkins.{{Cite web |last=Comstock |first=Jonah |date=2012-12-21 |title=Fitness app-maker Noom nabs $2.6M for Korean expansion |url=https://www.mobihealthnews.com/19654/fitness-app-maker-noom-nabs-2-6m-for-korean-expansion |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=MobiHealthNews |language=en}}
Noom relaunched in 2017 with a subscription-based weight-management app.{{Cite web |last=Kim |first=Joo-Wan |date=Aug 22, 2024 |title=What's wrong with making money from startup exits? |url=https://www.kedglobal.com/the-ked-view/newsView/ked202408220008 |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=The Korea Economic Daily |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Thau |first=Barbara |date=2021-02-17 |title=How Noom Incorporated Psychology and Technology Into Its Weight-Loss App |url=https://www.uschamber.com/co/good-company/the-leap/noom-weight-loss-app-technology |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=United States Chamber of Commerce |language=en-US}}
In 2020, Jeong was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.{{Cite web |title=Entrepreneur Of The Year New York judges |url=https://www.ey.com/en_us/entrepreneur-of-the-year-us/new-york/judges |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=www.ey.com |language=en-US}}
In 2021, Noom raised $540 million in funding, valuing the company at $3.7 billion.{{Cite news |last=Peebles |first=Angelica |last2=Tse |first2=Crystal |date=May 24, 2021 |title=Weight-Loss App Noom Gets $540 Million in Silver Lake-Led Round |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-25/weight-loss-app-noom-gets-540-million-in-silver-lake-led-round?embedded-checkout=true |access-date=April 1, 2025 |work=Bloomberg}}
In 2023, Jeong stepped down as Noom CEO and was replaced by Geoff Cook, a founder of The Meet Group.{{Cite web |last=Cutter |first=Chip |title=Noom Picks New CEO as It Moves Into Market for Ozempic |url=https://www.wsj.com/tech/noom-picks-new-ceo-as-it-moves-into-market-for-ozempic-578e235d |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=WSJ |language=en-US}}
References
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Category:American technology chief executives
Category:American technology company founders
Category:21st-century American businesspeople
Category:South Korean chief executives
Category:South Korean company founders