Yoshino graduated from Keio University’s Faculty of Law in 1990 and received an MBA from UC Berkeley in 2002, where he was a Hitachi Fellow in the Management of Technology program. After working for Mitsui & Co.’s Chemical Department, he retired to pursue investing and consulting in the USA. In August 2007, he established Microwave Chemical Co., Ltd and became its Chairman & CEO, a position he currently holds.

I graduated from the Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Osaka in 1989, and completed Master of Engineering in 1991. Subsequently, I joined Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (now Panasonic Corporation), where I was engaged in research and development as well as standardization activities for Blu-ray Discs. In 1999, I received Doctor of Engineering from The University of Osaka. I was appointed as a Professor at the Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University in 2006. Starting in 2010, I served as an Industrial Strategy Officer in the Fine Ceramics, Nanotechnology, and Materials Strategy Office at the Manufacturing Industries Bureau of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), focusing on technological strategy formulation and industrial policy. I returned to The University of Osaka in 2014, and has been dedicated to industry-academia collaboration, with a particular focus on startup support. Since 2020, within the Innovation Strategy Division which comprises the Venture and Business Development Support Office, the Intellectual Property Office, and the Human Resource Development Office, I have been driving activities related to discovering research seeds, supporting startup creation, and nurturing innovative talent for startups. I have contributed to national science and technology policies, including industry-academia collaboration and startup creation across a wide range of fields.

Born in Osaka Prefecture in 1978. In 1996, while still a student at the National Institute of Technology, Maizuru College, he founded Sakura Internet. In 2005, when he was 27, his company was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers market, and it is currently listed on the Prime market. Leveraging his own entrepreneurial experience, he has worked as a mentor and angel investor for numerous startups, and he has also been involved in guiding young entrepreneurs and student engineers as a project manager for the IPA Mitou Program. In addition to his duties as president, he serves as an outside director for several companies. He also dedicates himself to the development of the industry in a wide range of fields in order to promote Japan’s digitalization and accelerate the growth of startups as the chairman of the Software Association of Japan (SAJ), the chairman of the Japan Data Center Council (JDCC), the vice chairman of the Japan Internet Providers Association (JAIPA), a standing director of the Kansai Association of Corporate Executives (chairman of the Global Venture Ecosystem Committee), a member of the Cabinet Office’s AI Strategy Council and its Expert Panel, and a member of various committees of the Cabinet Secretariat’s Japan Growth Strategy Council. He is based in Okinawa.

Joined NEC Corporation in 1990. Following his work at the Optical and Wireless Device Research Laboratories, he has held management positions in R&D Planning, Technology Strategy, and Intellectual Property. He was appointed Corporate SVP in 2023. He also serves as a Director of NEC X, Inc., which operates a startup co-creation platform in Silicon Valley, and NEC Laboratories America, Inc. Additionally, he holds committee and executive positions with METI, Keidanren, and JIPA.