Google Hires Former Samsung CTO Injong Rhee to head IoT Projects

The former Chief Technology Officer Injong Rhee left Samsung Electronics to join Google as an Entrepreneur-In-Residence to lead their Internet-of-Things business.

Sofiko Abeslamidze By Sofiko Abeslamidze Updated 3 mins read
Google Hires Former Samsung CTO Injong Rhee to head IoT Projects
Photo: Samsung Newsroom / Flickr

The Internet of Things, or IoT, a term that encompasses things that accesses data online. “Things,” in the IoT sense, can refer to a wide variety of devices such as self-driving cars, home appliances with virtual assistants and the latest weather sensors on farms. Over the last few years, the IoT model enhanced its application and attempts to incorporate smart devices into daily life were accomplished.

This gives a breakthrough concept stamina to expand its business reach, and Google along with globe’s leading companies are not willing to miss out the chance chasing a dominant position on the robust technology market.

Clearly one could argue that success of developing products mainly depends on the horsepower of the team under the hood. Considering this, ambitious software experts like Injong Rhee with decent background under their belt have no trouble finding a good position since job openings in the IoT field have increased.

Injong Rhee climbed up his career ladder working for the Korean giant Samsung. During that time, he has effectively coordinated a series of milestone projects such as Samsung Knox, the company’s enterprise security platform; Samsung Pay, its mobile payment system, and Bixby, the company’s digital assistant.

However, under unknown circumstances Injong Rhee left the company back in December after more than six years there, most recently serving as a chief technology officer and head of software and services’ research and development.

To recall his involvement with Samsung he notes:

“My adventures at Samsung with many talented colleagues enabled me to create and be part of several groundbreaking product launches. While I will always cherish my time at Samsung, it is time to embark on my next adventure.”

On Monday 12 February, Injong Rhee shared a Linkedin post informing that he would be a part of Google’s IoT team. The post also revealed that Injong Rhee was hired on the position of entrepreneur-in-residence under Diane Greene, chief executive of the cloud computing group that basically focuses on selling software and hardware.

Explaining the nature of his work at Google, Rhee says:

“One of the first things I would like to do with my Google colleagues is to get these efforts coordinated and aligned toward a concerted IoT story of Google – in the process, create distinct consumer and enterprise product lines. With support from Diane and the other members of the leadership team, I hope to grow Google IoT into a sustainable and profitable business line.”

By now Google has very nascent experience in the field of services aimed at helping companies analyze data from a network of Internet-connected equipment. Giant players like Amazon Inc, Microsoft Corp and IBM Corp stifles Google on its way to become the center of IoT industry and achieve wide market adoption.  Nevertheless, Injong Rhee is on board to enrich company’s IoT product portfolio and make things change for the better.

Sofiko Abeslamidze

Sofiko is a freelance fintech copywriter at Coinspeaker. With a Bachelor degree in International Business and Economics, Sofiko has been deepening her knowledge of an agile innovative industry primary focusing on the robust blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. As a bank employee, Sofiko particularly keens on crypto and blockchain integration into the established banking systems.