Born in a small fishing village in South Korea to a family of doctors, Saeju Jeong always had an intense desire to help people. His father's early death made him more motivated than ever to change lives.

The Heavy Metal Detour

Before tech, Saeju founded South Korea's first-ever heavy metal record label. Then he dropped out of college and moved to the US with a different vision.

Finding His Co-Founder

Saeju met Artem Petakov, who was working at Google. He convinced Artem to leave the security of Google to develop Noom together - a company dedicated to helping people live healthier lives through behavior change.

800 Rejections

"He pitched his vision over 800 times to venture capitalists and investors over four years and received zero dollars." The persistence through rejection was extraordinary.

The Breakthrough

In 2014, they finally figured out the formula: psychology-based behavior change for weight loss. They dropped all other products and focused laser-sharp on the Noom weight loss app.

The Results

• Named EY Entrepreneur of the Year in 2020
• Reached $3.7 billion valuation
• Millions of users worldwide
• Disrupted the $450 billion US wellness market

Saeju's journey proves that massive rejection isn't the end - it's just the beginning.