Speakers
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Seiichi Matsuo
Tokai National Higher Education and Research System
Seiichi Matsuo
Chancellor, Tokai National Higher Education and Research System
Chancellor Seiichi Matsuo has been active in the field of medicine for over 40 years, with a career spanning research, medical practice and institutional governance. After receiving his Doctorate in Medicine at Nagoya University in 1981 and spending time as a research fellow in New York, Chancellor Matsuo worked as a physician before returning to Nagoya University, being made Professor at the Graduate School of Medicine in 2002. In 2004, he became Vice Director of Nagoya University Hospital, being promoted to Director in 2007.At Nagoya University, he has served as Vice President, as well as heading up a number of organizations and committees including Academic Research and Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration. He was made President of Nagoya University in April 2015 and served in that position until March 2022, taking up his current position as Chancellor of Tokai National Higher Education and Research System upon its foundation in April 2020.
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Abdulmalik Adeyemo
FundusAI
Abdulmalik Adeyemo
FundusAI CEO
Abdulmalik Adeyemo is an AI Engineer with over four years of experience leveraging advanced machine learning and deep learning techniques to solve complex business challenges. He graduated with First-Class Honors in Computer Engineering from the University of Ilorin, where he was awarded the Best Graduating Student in his department. Currently, he is pursuing a Master’s in Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence Specialization) at the prestigious Nagoya Institute of Technology in Japan. Abdulmalik is the Founder and CEO of FundusAI, Africa’s first AI-powered ecosystem designed to make personalized diabetes care affordable and accessible. He is also the CEO and Co-founder of TryKeyProtocol, a hardware technology company that empowers investors to monitor and optimize returns on infrastructure investments. With a strong passion for innovation and impact, Abdulmalik continues to bridge the gap between cutting-edge technology and real-world solutions, particularly in the field of healthcare
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Dr Adriana Marais
Proudly Human
Dr Adriana Marais
Proudly Human Founder
Dr Adriana Marais has a background in theoretical physics, her PhD and postdoctoral research focused on quantum effects in biology and the origins of the building blocks of life in space. Adriana is currently a researcher at the University of Stellenbosch and the National Institute for Theoretical and Computational Sciences, both in South Africa, and faculty at the Singularity University. Adriana is also a director at the Foundation for Space Development Africa, preparing Africa’s first mission to the Moon, the Africa2Moon Project, she is scientific moderator on space resources with the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator and chair of space sciences at Tod’Aérs Aeronautics and Space Research. In 2019, Adriana left her position as Head of Innovation at SAP Africa to found Proudly Human, and she is currently leading the organisation’s Off-World Project, in preparation for extreme conditions on Earth and beyond.
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Ai Kawaguchi
NewsPicks for WE
Ai Kawaguchi
NewsPicks for WE Editor in Chief
She holds a master's degree from the Graduate School of Letters at Showa Women's University. With previous experience at Shogakukan Creative and HuffPost Japan, she now leads the advertising production team at NewsPicks Studios and serves as the editor-in-chief of NewsPicks for WE, a project dedicated to empowering women in their careers. Her published work spans a range of media, focusing on women's work styles and healthcare.
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Aiko Kozaki
JANPIA
Aiko Kozaki
Director of Investment Department, JANPIA
Since January 2024, leading the Investment Division at JANPIA, Aiko has been dedicated to fostering an impact-first investment market in Japan. Starting in 2007 at the Japan Research Institute, she developed methodologies for analyzing the ESG aspects of corporate performance and supported financial institutions in ESG investment strategies and product development. She also served as a member of the "Study Group on ESG Factors in Corporate Value Analysis," established by the Securities Analysts Association of Japan, contributing to the promotion and awareness of ESG investing in Japan. From 2020 to 2022, she was involved in the establishment of the Sustainable Finance Expert Team at the Financial Services Agency and supported the development of related policies.
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Akihiko Shibahara
Research Institute for Earth Science Visualization Technology
Akihiko Shibahara
Research Institute for Earth Science Visualization Technology CEO
1.CEO, Research Institute for Earth Science Visualization Technology Co.,Ltd (AIST* Start-ups). *National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology.2.Dr. Akihiko Shibahara is a geologist, paleontologist, and 3D-CAM (computer-aided manufacturing) engineer. He received a Doctor degree of Science from Tsukuba University, and he worked as a curator at the Geological Museum in AIST*. His recent research has focused on the visualization of earth science, such as underground data or hazard maps using 3D modeling techniques. In 2016, he established the Institute for Earth Science Visualization Technology as an AIST Start-ups to implement his research activity. He is also a visiting professor at Fukui Prefectural University and a visiting researcher at Dinosaur Research Investigation at the same university to visualize the spatial relationship between geology and paleontology. Earth Science Visualization Technology established several techniques of building up finely-detailed 3D miniatures to visualize geological information and hazard maps. In 2024, he is working on Scientific Research for the science fiction drama “Ultraman Arc".
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Akihiro Yoshimoto
Sintokogio, Ltd.
Akihiro Yoshimoto
Sintokogio, Ltd. Executive Officer
He is in charge of equity investment and business collaborations and M&A for new business development at Sintokogio, foundry equipment and surface treatment company headquartered in Nagoya. The company actively invests in both domestic and overseas starups. Prior to joining Sintokogio, he worked as a CPA at Arthur Andersen in New York, where he was involved in audits and M&A due diligence. After returning to Japan, he served as president of a Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed company, and supported startups with fundraising, business plan, and shareholder reporting as a part-time CFO.
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Akihisa Mizuno
Central Japan Economic Federation
Akihisa Mizuno
Chairman, Central Japan Economic Federation
After receiving his master's degree in Civil Engineering at the Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, in 1978, he joined Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. He served as the President and Director from 2010 to 2015, and then as the Chairman of the Board of Directors until 2020. Since 2020, he has been an Advisor to the company and has also served as the Chairman of the Central Japan Economic Federation, contributing to the development of the regional economy.
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Akihito Fujii
KDDI Corporation
Akihito Fujii
Executive Officer, Deputy General Manager KDDI Group Strategy Division Solution Business Planning Division and Executive Mentor Open Innovation Division,KDDI Corporation and resident and Representative Director, KDDI Digital Divergence Holdings Corporation.
Akito Fujii joined KDDI Corporation in 2013 after working for Fujitsu Limited, Sun Microsystems, and Google LLC.He has promoted cloud business and agile development, and as General Manager of Service Planning and Development Division, he is in charge of service planning and development in the corporate domain. Currently he is seconded to the Solution Business Planning Division, and KDDI Digital Divergence Holdings Corporation, where he serves as President and Representative Director.He is also a non-executive director of Scrum Inc. japan, iret Inc., and KDDI Web Communications Inc. and SORACOM and FLYEHEEL and ELYZA and Chairman of KDDI Agile Development Center Corporation.Since 2009, he has also served as a project manager for the Information-technology Promotion Agency, Japan (IPA)'s Exploratory IT Human Resources Project, supporting the discovery and development of young human resources.
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Akinori Sato
WonderPlanet Inc.
Akinori Sato
WonderPlanet Inc. Director & COO & CFO
Born in Nagoya. After graduating from the Master's Course of Economics at Kobe University where I skipped a grade, I joined the Research Department of Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd. (currently Daiwa Securities Co., Ltd.) in 2008, where I worked as a sell side analyst, a corporate planning at the group headquarters, and an analyst in the investment banking department. Hoping to realize an IPO for a venture in my hometown of Nagoya, I joined my current position in 2016 and returned to my hometown . After raising the total of over 3 billion yen before the IPO, we achieved IPO on TSE Mothers in 2021. I have been serving as COO since 2024. Certified Member Analyst of SAAJ.
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Akira Amano
Dentsu Media Innovation Lab
Akira Amano
Dentsu Media Innovation Lab, Principal Researcher
M.A. in Interdisciplinary Information Studies from the University of Tokyo, specializing in research and consulting on SNS trends and trends among young people. His many publications include “A New Generation of Business is Born Inside Smartphones,” “History of SNS Transition,” and “Information Media White Paper (co-authored). He has also served as an expert commentator for the Nikkei Think! Expert, a part-time lecturer at Meiji Gakuin University's Faculty of Sociology, and a judge for the TikTok for Business Japan Awards 2024 Creative Category.
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Alissa Miky
Aqua Theon Inc.
Alissa Miky
Aqua Theon Inc. CEO
Born in NY in 1992, Alissa helped launch a flower brand during her time at Waseda University, growing it into Rakuten's No.1. She gained experience in a sake startup, Fujimaki Department Store, and an Israeli trading company. In September 2019, she founded Aqua Theon inc. (formerly Cashi Cake inc.) in LA, with the mission of 'Bringing rural Japan to the world'. The company focuses on seaweed tech for food, alternative plastics, and medical capsules. Misaky.Tokyo, the marine plant-based Japanese sweets brand, has 1.4 million TikTok followers and is expanding nationwide.
