New Visionaries Join the Internet Hall of Fame – Celebrating the Pioneers Who Keep the Web Global

The internet’s evolution into what it is today did not happen. The brilliance of early network developers and engineers laid the groundwork for its current state. Although it has its challenges, there’s no denying its role in current society. Today’s progress is practically non-existent without the help of the internet.

Because of the internet’s importance in everyone’s daily life, the Internet Society has been recognizing those who have contributed to its growth. According to their press release, eight new members will be inducted in 2025. Two of the inductees have contributed to the early days of IP Addresses and the internet, as well as set the groundwork for its future.

Hyunje Park - Asia’s IPv4 Pioneer

Korea’s development as one of the pillars of the internet in Asia is due to the efforts of Hyunje Park. According to the official website of the Internet Hall of Fame, he is “Among the first TCP/IP engineers outside the USA and ARPANET community, he wanted Korean and Asian researchers to be able to exchange data and email as easily as their peers in the United States and Europe.”

Because of the goal he set for himself, he has pushed internet technology during the mid-80s with some impressive technical achievements. In 1986, he registered the first Korean IP address. He was also instrumental in the development of IPv4.

Aside from his technical contributions, Hyunje Park was also instrumental in pushing for the importance of high-speed internet in his country. Despite the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, Park was able to set up broadband internet. This is especially notable because the financial crisis has given Park some significant pushback from investors. Despite the challenge, Korea experienced broadband internet and became one of the countries in the world to experience high-speed internet.

Dong Liu - IPv6 Advocate

One of the biggest challenges of today’s internet is the depletion of IPv4. Dong Liu has been working to advance IPv6 and has established some of the most important facilities for its advancement. According to his profile at the Internet Hall of Fame, “His contributions include advancing the global large-scale deployment of IPv6, leading to the establishment of the world’s largest IPv6 testing laboratory, launching the world’s first IPv6 public DNS resolver, expanding the 'Open Data Space Network,' and conducting research on high-speed network connections supporting AI agents.”

Today, Dong Liu continues to promote the use of IPv6, given its advantages in improving the internet. He is also actively promoting the importance of AI in advancing connectivity and technology for everyone.

About The Internet Hall of Fame

The Internet Hall of Fame was established in 2012 by the Internet Society (ISOC). In its first year, a total of 33 inductees were introduced. Among the inductees were Linus Torvalds (Creator of Linux), Robert Kahn (Regarded as one of the Fathers of the Internet, and Developer of TCP/IP Protocol), and Mitchell Baker (Co-Founder of the Mozilla Project). An advisory board selects the inductees, and they are chosen based on their role in the development of the internet.