Itaru NISHIZAWA, Ph.D., P.E.
Vice President and Executive Officer, CTO,
GM of the Research & Development Group,
Hitachi, Ltd.
As Vice President and CTO of Hitachi, Ltd., Nishizawa is responsible for research and development in the Hitachi Group, intellectual property and standardization to accelerate innovation, as well as leading the Research & Development Group of Hitachi, Ltd. as its General Manager.
Nishizawa joined the Central Research Laboratory of Hitachi, Ltd. in 1996 as a researcher, working on parallel database management systems, middleware systems, and stream data management systems. In 2013, he transferred to the business side of operations working in the IT Platform Division to develop real-time data management solutions for the global market. In 2015, he returned to the newly established Global Center for Social Innovation in the research organization to lead customer co-creation projects in CME (communications, media, and entertainment) and finance verticals. In 2017, he was appointed to the Center for Technology Innovation, where he led the research centers responsible for digital technology and services until March 2023 before assuming his current position as the head of the entire research organization.
Nishizawa received his PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Tokyo. He was a visiting scholar in the Department of Computer Science at Stanford University (2002-2003) and is also an alumnus of the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program (2018). He is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), Information Processing Society of Japan (IPSJ), and Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers (IEICE).
Technology Strategy Office
Asako KOIKE, Ph.D.
General Manager, Technology Strategy Office
Hitachi, Ltd.
Responsible for proposing research strategies, and technology management of the Research & Development Group.
Koike joined Hitachi after completing her M.Sc. at Kyoto University in 1994. At the Central Research Laboratory, she was involved in the development of biomedical knowledge processing and genome analytics before focusing on technology development and productization of medical diagnostic・therapeutic equipment. After working in the business side of Hitachi in the Government & Public Corporation Information Systems Division, in the Future Investment Division at Head Office, and as CTO of Healthcare Business Division, she assumed her current position as head of the Technology Strategy Office.
Koike received her Ph.D. from the University of Kyoto in 1999. She has also held several positions in academia including visiting associate professor from 2003-2005 at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, and more recently, a visiting professor at Tohoku University from 2014-2018. She is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
Center for Digital Services (CDS)
Seishi HANAOKA, Ph.D.
General Manager, CDS
Hitachi, Ltd.
Responsible for R&D for technology innovation with a special focus on digital technologies supporting social innovation business.
Hanaoka joined the Central Research Laboratory of Hitachi after completing his master’s degree in telecommunication engineering at Osaka University in 1996. After engaging in R&D for next-generation wireless communication systems (3G, 4G, 5G, cognitive radio) and in international standardization activities, he changed his area of research focus to network systems, connectivity, IT platforms, and their management. From 2018-2019, he worked as a senior manager in the Management Planning Office of the Strategy Planning Division at Hitachi headquarters before returning to the Research & Development Group in 2020 to serve as the Head of the Digital Technology Innovation Center, and in 2021, as the Head of the Digital Platform Innovation Center, before assuming his current position in April 2023.
Hanaoka is a senior member of the Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers (IEICE) and a member of a member of IEEE and the Information Processing Society of Japan (IPSJ).
Center for Sustainability(CSU)
Naohiro KUSUMI, Ph.D.
General Manager, CSU
Hitachi, Ltd.
Responsible for technology innovation initiatives in energy, mobility, industry, and production engineering fields aimed at realization of a sustainable society.
Kusumi joined Hitachi, Ltd. in 1999 as a researcher after completing his Ph.D. in electrical and electonics systems at the Graduate School of Information Science and Electrical Engineering, Kyushu University. As a researcher, he worked on the development of support systems for the control and design power plants, power transmission and distribution equipment at the Power & Industrial Systems R&D Laboratory, Energy & Environmental Systems Laboratory and the Hitachi Research Laboratory. In 2018, he was appointed to lead energy research as the General Manager of the Center for Technology Innovation – Energy and served as a Research Director at the European R&D Centre, Hitachi Europe Ltd. in 2021 before assuming his current position in 2022.
Kusumi is a member of IEEE, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Society of Instrument and Control Engineers (SICE), Atomic Energy Society of Japan (AESJ) and a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan (IEEJ).
Center for Exploratory Research
Toshiharu MIWA, Ph.D.
General Manager, CER
Hitachi, Ltd.
Responsible for vision-driven exploratory research for the Hitachi R&D group. This includes fundamental and frontier research in information sciences, physical sciences, life sciences and environment sciences, as well establishing new areas of research to address challenges faced by society.
Miwa joined the Production Engineering Research Laboratory, Hitachi, Ltd., in1998 after completing his M. Eng. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Keio. As a research Engaged in research and development of production and quality control systems, design for manufacturing (DfM: Design for Manufacturing), inspection and measurement in Hitachi's manufacturing field. 2005-2006 Visiting Industrial Associate at Stanford University, Mechanical Engineering. From 2023 to 2024, Miwa served as the General Manager of the 2050 Project Office of the Innovation and Growth Strategy Division, and from 2024 to present, Miwa has been in his current position.
Miwa is a member of The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers and The Society of Precision Engineers.
Center for Regional Strategy (CRS)
Yuichiro NAKAYA, Ph.D.
General Manager, CRS
(concurrently)
Sr. Vice President and CTO,
General Manager, Research & Development Division,
Hitachi America, Ltd.
Responsible for R&D strategy for all regions outside of Japan, and technology development, co-creation and open innovation in the North America region.
Nakaya joined the Central Research Laboratory of Hitachi, Ltd. in 1993 as a researcher in the area of video coding after completing his Ph.D. in electronics engineering at the University of Tokyo. He brings a wealth of research, management and business creation experience to his current position which he assumed in April 2024. Prior to this, he has held research and management positions in the areas of digital media processing, robotics, wireless communications, biotechnology, production engineering, IT platform, physical security, etc. in both the US and Japan, including Project Leader and Deputy General Manger of the Future Investment Division (2017-2022), General Manager of the Global Center for Social Innovation (2016), and General Manager of R&D Division, Hitachi America since 2022.
Nakaya is a member of IEEE, Institute of Image Information and Television Engineers (ITE), Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers (IEICE) and Information Processing Society of Japan (IPSJ).
Europe
Kazuyuki SUGIMURA, Ph.D.
CTO and General Manager, European R&D Centre,
Hitachi Europe Ltd.
Responsible for R&D in Europe, participation into local community, creation of Social Innovation Business and cutting-edge technology development.
Sugimura joined the Mechanical Engineering Research Laboratory of Hitachi, Ltd. in 1996. As a researcher, he was engaged in research for simulation, numerical optimization and data mining technologies targeting home appliances, railway rolling stock and industrial compressors. In 2001, he was a visiting researcher at the University of Cambridge. He assumed his current role in April 2020 after working in corporate technology strategy development, management of mechanical engineering research at Hitachi, and completing the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
Sugimura is a member of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers.
China
MA Yuanchen
General Manager, Hitachi China Research Laboratory,
Hitachi (China) Ltd.
Responsible for R&D strategy, technology development, collaborative creation with customers and open innovation in China.
Ma joined Hitachi China Research Laboratory in 2003 as a researcher working in various fields related to AI and big data, such as IoT, big data platforms, natural language processing, video analysis and large language models, supporting Hitachi’s efforts to develop technologies and solutions in healthcare and elder care, intelligent manufacturing, smart city, and other fields for the China region. He was appointed to head the research organization in China in April 2024.
Ma holds a Master of Engineering degree from the Department of Electronic Engineering of Tsinghua University and holds a dozen patents and has authored 5 technical publications.
India
Kingshuk BANERJEE, Ph.D.
Director, and Head of the Research & Development Centre,
Hitachi India Pvt. Ltd.
Responsible for global digital platform development and engineering.
Banerjee is a specialist in the development and deployment of artificial intelligence systems. Prior to his current role, Banerjee was a Partner in IBM Services where he led the delivery of Cognitive-Business-Decision-Support (CBDS) services worldwide. A computer science graduate by training, he earned his Doctorate in Engineering Management from George Washington University, USA.
Banerjee is certified by Cornell and Harvard University in Executive Leadership and Change Management. He loves traveling, Net-surfing and meeting the "new" that includes people, culture and technology.
Southeast Asia & Australia
Wujuan LIN, Ph.D.
General Manager, R&D Center,
Hitachi Asia Ltd.
Responsible for R&D strategy, technology development, collaborative creation with customers and open innovation in Southeast Asia and Australia.
Lin joined the Research & Development Center of Hitachi Asia in 2007 as a researcher. Prior to assuming his current position in April 2024, he served as its Deputy GM and also headed the Digital Solution Group in the R&D center. As Chief Solution Architect, his work covered technology and solution development in various sectors, including building and energy, logistics and transportation, finance, and public safety, and contributed to the creation and delivery of several multi-million social innovation projects across ASEAN countries.
Lin received his doctoral degree in electrical and computer engineering from National University of Singapore. He has over 35 patents and has authored 15 technical publications.
