Thursday, October 9, 2025

Execs from Huawei and Naver are among this week’s biggest women exec moves

Hi, MPW Daily readers! We’re woefully behind on our usual Movers and Shakers, the women from Fortune 500 CEOs to rising leaders and startup founders, who are making career moves worth knowing about. Since we last featured this roundup, some women have been doing really cool things—from working on nuclear security to AI safety. See their latest moves here and keep reading for more news below…

Ploughshares, a foundation with the goal of eliminating the threat of nuclear weapons, launched Women Transforming Global Security, an effort to bring women’s expertise to that mission. Its founding members include former president of Ireland Mary Robinson, former New Zealand PM Helen Clark and Ploughshares president Emma Belcher.

Meng Wanzhou is back as rotating chair of Huawei through March 2026. She was just ranked No. 3 on the Fortune Most Powerful Women Asia list.

Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon (No. 8 on MPW Asia) has been appointed to join the board of the United Nations Global Compact.

Bo Young Lee, who was the first chief diversity and inclusion officer at Uber, is becoming CEO of the nonprofit AI4ALL.

Kidney health company Strive Health hired Michele Paige as chief growth officer. She came from Elevance Health’s PBM, CarelonRx.

New York Life named Deepa Soni EVP and chief information officer. Her role includes overseeing New York Life Ventures, the life insurer’s venture capital arm. She came from the Hartford.

Revision Skincare named Lisa Paley CEO. She comes from the world of consumer health, through Haleon and GSK Consumer Healthcare, known for brands like Sensodyne and Advil.

Lambda, a “superintelligence cloud,” named Heather Planishek audit chair of its board. She is currently chief operating and financial officer at workflow platform Tines.

Sports creative studio 11 Ounces added ad exec Shannon Washington as a partner and chief creative officer.

Future Family founder Clare Tomkins is stepping down as CEO. She’ll become exec chair of the fertility financing startup.

Investment bank Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips added Maria Weaver as managing director.

Hippo home insurance named Robin Gordon chief data officer.

444 Sounds added Apple Music alum Izzy Parrell as director of streaming and digital partnerships.

Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com

The Most Powerful Women Daily newsletter is Fortune’s daily briefing for and about the women leading the business world. Subscribe here.

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

An atmospheric scientist, a seventh-generation basket-maker, and a cartographer are among 2025's MacArthur grant recipients. Some really cool women received the prestigious prize; I highly recommended exploring their work here.

Don't worry too much about Dolly Parton. After her sister asked for prayers amid health concerns, the legendary singer posted a video to reassure fans that she was OK—despite some health challenges. CNN

Sanae Takaichi’s ascendance is seen as historic for Japan. Even those who don't support her conservative politics agree that it's remarkable for a woman to make it to the top of the country's leadership, where tradition deeply matters. Financial Times

Women are at the forefront of AI adoption. Fortune's new AIQ list ranks Fortune 500 companies by their success in AI adoption. Women lead 18% of the companies that make the cut, compared to 11% of the full Fortune 500. Fortune

New Jersey's attorney general is investigating Uber's handling of sexual assault. The state's AG is looking into whether Uber committed consumer fraud by misrepresenting its safety to passengers and drivers. Uber says it will share more about its ongoing safety efforts. New York Times

A year after leaving the Gates Foundation, Melinda French Gates gives an exit interview. She'll spend the rest of her life getting more power to women and girls, she says. A key issue is that the leaders fighting to advance women's rights don't have as much support—including financial support—as "those committed to reversing them do." Marie Claire