Management, Directors & Advisory Board
Spencer Huh
Director, President and Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Spencer Huh graduated from the Korea University in Seoul with a BEc. He is an experienced and proven financial professional with more than 25 years of financial and operational experience in Canada and Korea, and a track record of supporting ambitious growth plans. His expertise includes financial operations, strategy, performance management, and business planning for Korean and Canadian companies.
Mr. Huh began his career in 1993 as an investment advisor with Hanwha Securities in Korea. After immigration to Canada in 2000, he served for 6 years as an investment advisor with BMO Nesbitt Burns in Toronto and, subsequently, he joined TD Canada Trust in Vancouver. Since 2012, Mr. Huh worked with numerous private and publicly listed companies in Korea and Canada, including mining, medical device, and high-tech companies. He has played an integral role in the establishment, acquisitions, and financing for these companies.
Dr. Jun Sik Jeoung
SVP, Cell Development & Commercialization
With a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Arizona, Dr. Jeoung is a globally recognized R&D and commercialization expert in lithium-ion battery technology with over 17 years of hands-on experience in Li-ion battery R&D, scale-up, and production technologies. Throughout his career at global automotive and battery cell manufacturers, Dr. Jeoung has led high-impact projects in Li-ion battery development, including the design, optimization, and commercial deployment of 21700 cylindrical cells, prismatic cells, and pouch cells for electric vehicle applications.
At Samsung SDI, Dr. Jeoung made a pivotal contribution by leading the development of BMW i3 EV’s 94Ah automotive cells, underscoring his ability to execute technically demanding, large-scale commercial projects. Before joining NEO, he served as Vice President of R&D at EoCell, a Silicon Valley-based silicon battery technology company. Dr. Jeoung successfully increased cell energy density and safety during his role, collaborated with Morrow Batteries (Norway’s premier giga-scale battery manufacturer) to develop commercial LFP-based EV cells, and managed global teams to deliver high-performance battery solutions.
Seok Joung Youn
Head of Manufacturing & Facility Operations
Mr. Youn brings 40 years of lithium-ion battery and facility operations experience and leadership from Samsung SDI, the world’s 7th-largest battery cell manufacturer, and global battery startups. With a technical background spanning process engineering and quality control, Mr. Youn acted in key roles in developing and realizing production efficiencies in high-volume manufacturing for both small-format and automotive batteries.
During his tenure at Samsung, Mr. Youn successfully launched the battery industry’s first 1,200mm-wide electrode production line for electric vehicles. Along with stabilizing product yield and establishing operator protocols, Mr. Youn enhanced Samsung’s global battery deployment capacity and reduced costs from lowered defects. He subsequently held senior roles at global battery startups, including EoCell, where he led pilot production lines for a European gigafactory’s commercial-level qualification and start-of-production (SOP).
Kenneth Hoffman, CFA, CIM
Independent Director
Mr. Hoffman is an internationally distinguished expert in battery materials with over 30 years of experience in investment management, energy, and metals and mining. Previously, Mr. Hoffman was the Global Head of Battery Materials at McKinsey & Company, where he advised on strategic planning, supply chain integration, and capital raising for clients across the global battery value chain. He has conducted more than 100 due diligences involving battery technologies and critical mineral assets and developed AI-enabled evaluation frameworks for leading industry stakeholders.
Prior to McKinsey, Mr. Hoffman served as the Global Head of Bloomberg Metals & Mining Research at Bloomberg and has held senior investment positions as a Portfolio Manager and Global Director of Research for prominent, large-AUM funds, including Millennium Partners and MarCap Investors.
In addition to his corporate roles, Mr. Hoffman is frequently invited as a keynote speaker at international forums and conferences, including PDAC, Saudi Arabia’s Future Minerals Forum, Fastmarkets events, and London Metal Exchange conferences. He also serves as a Director of North America’s largest battery industry event, The Battery Show, and is a special advisor to Pure Lithium, a Boston-based lithium metal battery technology company.
Seok Hyung Lee, LLB, LLM
Independent Director
Mr. Seok Hyung Lee is a distinguished South Korean attorney with an illustrious legal and public service career of over 50 years. Serving in a multitude of highly acclaimed legal positions, Mr. Lee was the Lead Attorney-at-Law for the Former South Korean President and the Presiding Judge of the Seoul High Court. As part of public service, he served in federal Ministerial-level roles, including Chairperson of the Press Arbitration Commission (Committee of the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism) and Audit Commissioner of the Board of Audit and Inspection (Direct Agency of the President of South Korea).
Beyond the scope of legal roles, Mr. Lee has been an Independent Director of HD Hyundai Electric (South Korea’s largest power generation and transmission company and affiliate of global conglomerate HD Hyundai) and an Independent Director of KB Capital and KB Asset Management (Subsidiary of South Korea’s largest financial institution, KB Financial Group). He is currently the managing partner of Sangyung Law Firm and has earned his LL.B. from Seoul National University College of Law.
Dr. Dongmok Whang
Independent Director, Lead Scientific Advisor
Dr. Dongmok Whang’s research expertise lies in the field of fabrication and manufacturing of low-dimensional nanomaterials, especially graphene, semiconductor nanowires, and porous nanostructures for applications in electric vehicle lithium-ion batteries, fuel cells, and various energy storage solutions.
Dr. Whang owns more than 50 patents, 2/3 of which are co-owned with Samsung Electronics, and he has also co-authored over 177 peer-reviewed publications with over 13,850 citations. For the past 5 years, Dr. Whang was also the leader of a joint research team of Samsung and Sungkyunkwan University (“SKKU”), which the team had attracted interest from both the academic and industrial sectors for its work on developing proprietary technology for large-scale synthesis of single-crystalline graphene. With the Nanoelectronics Lab Team at Samsung, Dr. Whang had also developed technology to synthesize large-area monatomic amorphous graphene.
Dr. Whang is a Professor at the School of Advanced Materials Science & Engineering and Advanced Institute of Nanotechnology at SKKU. Dr. Whang has received his PhD degree in Chemistry from the Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) in 1997, and prior to joining SKKU, he was a Senior Research Fellow at Harvard University, being a member of the Lieber Research Group that focuses on nanotechnology.
Admiral Seung-Sub Shim
Strategic Defense Advisor
4-Star Admiral Seung-Sub Shim of the Korean Navy (Ret.) has served as the Chief of Naval Operations, spending a 35-year illustrious military career overseeing naval strategy, intelligence, and readiness at the highest levels of command. His prior roles included Commander of the ROK First Fleet, Director of Intelligence & Operations of Naval Headquarters, and Director General of Strategic Planning of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
Following his naval career, Adm. Shim served as the Ambassador of South Korea to Australia where he was appointed to strengthen bilateral military and defense industry cooperation and to expand Korea’s defense equipment and technology exports.
Major General Geun-Young Choi
Strategic Defense Advisor
2-Star Major General Geun-Young Choi of the Korean Air Force (Ret.) is a highly decorated fighter pilot and senior officer who has spent 20 years protecting South Korea’s territorial airspace. Maj. Gen. Choi held critical positions that have shaped the long-term development of the Korean Air Force, including Air Force strategy, aerospace power structure, and defense procurement.
During his tenure, he directly managed new weapons introduction and defense system improvements through cooperation with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), South Korea’s central administrative agency for defense procurement & the introduction/development of military equipment. Maj. Gen. Choi has also served as Commander of the Air Mobility & Reconnaissance, Air Defense & Control, and Air Force Education & Training. Since retiring in 2020, he has further served as a standing auditor for the Military Mutual Aid Association.
Dr. Jinhyuk Lee
Senior Scientific Advisor
Dr. Jinhyuk Lee is an expert in the field of rechargeable batteries and is currently an Assistant Professor of Materials Engineering at McGill University. Dr. Lee received his Ph.D. from MIT in 2015 and performed postdoctoral research at UC Berkeley (2016-2017) and MIT (2017-2019) before he joined McGill in 2020.
Dr. Lee’s research is discovering sustainable battery materials based on experimental and theoretical materials research and has published numerous high-impact papers such as in Science, Nature, Nature Chemistry, and Nature Communications. He is widely known as the inventor of the disordered-rock salt Li-ion battery cathodes, which is being currently highlighted as one of the highest-energy-density and cheapest cobalt-free cathode materials for Li-ion batteries. He also owns five key patents and patent-applications related to battery materials.
In recognition of his research achievement, Dr. Lee was chosen as one of the five finalists of the Science Award Electrochemistry (2019) by Volkswagen and BASF and received the NSERC Discovery Accelerator Supplement Award (2020). He was also selected as the Samsung Presidential Scholar (2010-2015) and received the prestigious MRS Graduate Student Gold Award (2014) during his Ph.D. Dr. Lee currently serves as a journal reviewer for Nature Communications, Joule, Chemistry of Materials, and other academic journals.
Dr. Hee-Dae Lim
Solid-State Battery R&D Task Force Advisor
Dr. Hee-Dae Lim is a devoted researcher primarily focusing on the development of next-generation batteries with an emphasis on ceramic and carbon materials. Creating novel materials and conducting process research for commercialization, he specializes in electrode and active material technologies for energy storage devices, SSBs, and multivalent-ion batteries. Engaging in collaborative efforts with local companies and institutions, Dr. Lim actively contributes to the advancement of battery technology.
Possessing an impressive publication record, he has published over 80 SCI papers with more than 40 patents related to next-generation battery technologies. Currently, Dr. Lim has been an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Hanyang University. He obtained his Ph.D. from Seoul National University in 2016 and served as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). He furthered his expertise as a Senior Researcher at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST).
Dr. Jun Woo Park
Solid-State Battery R&D Task Force Advisor
Dr. Jun Woo Park is an expert in the field of electrochemical materials and next-generation rechargeable batteries. Since 2013, he has been a Principal Researcher at the Battery Research Division of the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI). During his tenure, Dr. Park has committed to several high-impact research including sulfur-based solid-state electrolytes, cost-effective fabrication of all-solid-state batteries, and redox flow batteries.
He owns over 50 exceptional research papers and holds more than 100 patents. In 2022, Dr. Park was honored with the Minister of Science and ICT Award from the Ministry of Science and ICT, and in 2021, he received the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy Award from the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. He received 2 billion won in technology royalties based on his research achievements.
In addition, Dr. Park is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electronic Functional Materials Engineering at the University of Science and Technology (UST) and is a committee member of the Industry Technology Evaluation group at the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. He also serves as a committee member at the Korea Technology and Information Promotion Agency for SMEs. Furthermore, Dr. Park holds a position on the Editorial Board of the Korea Battery Society (KOBS). He earned his Master's and Ph.D. degrees under the guidance of Professor Masayoshi Watanabe at Yokohama National University, Japan, as a recipient of the prestigious Monbukagakusho (MEXT) Scholarship.
Dr. Jiwoong Bae
Solid-State Battery R&D Task Force Advisor
Dr. Jiwoong Bae specializes in electrochemical energy devices, focusing on solid-state batteries and next-generation batteries employing lithium-metal and silicon anode materials. With an ability to design high-performance energy systems, his expertise in materials chemistry enables exceptional results in the synthesis and selection of suitable materials for energy devices. Including collaborative research with Dr. John Goodenough, Nobel laureate and the inventor of the lithium-ion battery, Dr. Bae published numerous influential papers that advanced the field of SSBs and lithium-metal anodes.
Dr. Bae has been an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Hanyang University since 2022. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 2020 and subsequently served as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Molecular Foundry of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) from 2021 to 2022. Actively engaged in energy device manufacturing, Dr. Bae strives to commercialize high-performance batteries, and as vice chairman of the Green Manufacturing System at KSMTE, Dr. Bae demonstrates his dedication to sustainable manufacturing processes.
Daniel Lim, CPA (Wash.)
Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary
Mr. Daniel Lim has extensive accounting experience in accordance with Canadian and U.S. GAAP, IFRS, and Canadian and U.S. Corporate Income Tax Act. Mr. Lim holds a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license from Washington State. He has an excellent history of guiding corporate M&As, designing highly efficient financial systems, and optimizing business processes.
Before joining the Company, Mr. Lim has accumulated experience in various industries, including the public sector, IT, manufacturing, and financial services, for over 15 years.
Larry Okada, CA, CPA, (Wash.)
Independent Director
Mr. Larry Okada has been involved with a number of public mining companies for 36 years. He is a Chartered Accountant and has been in public practice since 1974 with extensive public finance and accounting experience with Deloitte and Touche, Staley Okada and Partners and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
Mr. Okada presently serves as the Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) for RedQuest Capital Corp (CPC) and is the Acting CFO of Africo Resources Ltd. as well as being a director and serving as chairman of the audit committee of Forum Uranium Corp. and Revett Minerals Corp.
