Asia Innovation Summit 2025
🧭 About the Summit
As global innovation accelerates, Asia’s tech and startup forces are rising rapidly. Innovators from diverse cultures are reshaping business, technology, and social impact.
Tokyo, as a multicultural innovation hub, offers the perfect setting for cross-border collaboration.
This summit brings together researchers, youth entrepreneurs, women leaders, and innovation hubs to explore the future of co-creating innovation in Asia — across education, deep tech, capital, incubation, and culture.
Session 1
14:10 – 14:40
Topic 1: Insights into Asia's InnovationLandscape and Emerging Trends
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Emanuel Pastreich, The Asia InstitutePresident
Dr. Emanuel Pastreich is the Chairman and Senior Research Fellow of the Asia Institute. He also serves as a Senior Fellow at the Center for China & Globalization (CCG), Visiting Research Fellow at Yale’s Council on East Asian Studies, President of the Earth Management Institute, and Vice President of the University of Brain Education. He formerly taught at Kyung Hee University, the University of Illinois, George Washington University, UC Berkeley, the University of Tokyo, and Korea University.
His research covers globalization, digital governance, U.S.–China relations, East Asian politics, and cultural studies. His articles have appeared in Observer, Global Times, JoongAng Daily, Japan Focus, Foreign Policy In Focus, and other major international outlets.
Dr. Pastreich is the author of multiple books on Asian politics, culture, and literature, and he is known for his cross-cultural insights into China, Japan, and Korea. He is fluent in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and French, and is recognized globally as a leading expert on Asian affairs.
14:40 – 15:10
Topic 2: Empowering Asian Founders:Building a Neutral,Impact-Driven Innovation Platform Ins pired by Nasdaq
Speaker: David Chen, Asia Innovation Hub AsiaCEO & Executive Director
Asia CEO and Executive Board Director of Asia Innovation Hub, leading its partnership with the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center. With 30+ years in capital markets and a strong background in fintech, green finance, AI, and semiconductors, he served as Head of Nasdaq Fintech in Greater China (2011–2024). David is a key connector between startups, corporations, and regulators, with a trusted network across Greater China’s tech and finance sectors.
15:10 – 15:40
Topic 3: China-Japan Innovation and Entrepreneurship Acceleration Platform
Keynote Speaker: Toshi Tanaka, Takumi Innovators & YTC Fund Founder/CEO & Founding Partner
Toshi is the Founder & CEO of Takumi Innovators, an accelerator building innovation bridges between Japan and China. He founded the company in Shanghai in 2015 and expanded to Shenzhen and Tokyo in 2018.
Before starting Takumi Innovators, he spent 12 years at Deloitte Tohmatsu, specializing in M&A advisory, investment consulting, IPO support, and audits for listed companies. From 2005 to 2009, he worked at Deloitte Shanghai, leading cross-border IPO projects. Earlier, he was a system engineer at Hewlett-Packard.
Toshi received the Shanghai Magnolia Award in 2019.
He holds a B.A. in Aerospace & Rocket Engineering from the University of Tokyo, is a U.S. CPA, and has passed both accounting and tax exams of the Chinese CPA, as well as China’s fund practitioner qualification.
15:40 - 15:55
Topic 4: Startup War —— Asia Innovation Stories
Keynote Speaker: Diego Rojas, Writer, Ai Film Director
Startup War: A Manifesto in 5 Battles is a frontline guide for founders navigating the chaos of early startup life. Packed with actionable insights, it helps founders avoid common traps, stay focused under pressure, and significantly increase their odds of success.
15:55 - 16:25 Round Table 1
Topic5: Co-Creating Asia’s Innovation Future 1: Academia, Capital, and DeepTech in Synergy
Moderator：Wilson Gu, SPACE 9 Founder
Guests：Emanuel Pastrech / David Chen / Toshi Tanaka/
Diego Rojas
Rest 16:25 ~ 16:35
Session 2
16:35 - 17:05
Topic 6: Becoming the Woman They Don’t Have a Name For Yet: Innovation Through Global Reinvention
Keynote Speaker: Maprang Suwanbubpa, The Female Untouchable Founder
The founder of The Female Untouchable shares a global innovation journey shaped across seven countries.
From Thailand and Germany to Canada, France, Denmark, Mexico, and Japan — each culture has contributed a distinct layer to her philosophy: discipline, structure, ambition, emotional depth, aesthetic intelligence, creative chaos, and precision.
This is the story of what it means to innovate as a global, solo female entrepreneur — beyond labels and borders.
A story men respect. A journey women feel.
17:05 - 17:20 Topic 7: Global Community Building
Keynote Speaker: Victoria Jiang, SmallWOD Co-founder
Victoria Jiang has nearly a decade of experience in cross-cultural communication and international market development across Southeast Asia. She is the Co-founder of SmallWOD, a global community for professionals, where she leads strategy and international community architecture.Her work focuses on building structured information flows, cross-cultural dialogue, and high-quality connection mechanisms across global cities.
SmallWOD is a global community brand powered by an app that connects world-class professionals across borders.
Our core members are based in major global hubs—Bay Area, Tokyo, Singapore, New York, London, and Paris—spanning industries such as technology, finance, entrepreneurship, academia, and the creative arts. Together, they form a dynamic network of innovators, builders, and thinkers shaping the future across continents.
17:20 - 17:35 Topic 8 ：Asia Catalyst：Content to Commerce
Keynote Speaker: Victor Chen, MatchPoint Co-founder
Victor Chen is the Co-Founder of MatchPoint, a Tokyo-based accelerator supporting Japan’s digital commerce and cross-border business growth. With over 20 years of multinational experience across Japan, Singapore, and China, he specializes in talent strategy, online retail ecosystems, and Asia market entry.
MatchPoint brings together Japanese, Chinese, and Southeast Asian expertise, enabling global brands to better understand Japan’s consumer landscape and expand through platforms such as TikTok Shop, Amazon Japan, and Rakuten.
Victor previously held senior roles at Unilever, Cargill, and Hudson. He holds a Master’s degree from The University of Hong Kong and is the author of Negotiations Are Everywhere.
17:35 - 18:05 Round Table 2
Topic 9 : Co-Creating Asia’s Innovation Future 2: Culture, Arts, and Women in Synergy
Moderator：Maprang Suwanbubpa, The Female Untouchable Founder
Guests：Heather Dobbin/ Victoria Jiang / Anna Wang / Yuanjing Liu / Victor Chen
Heather Dobbin
Heather is an experienced professional coach, facilitator, and community builder with 15 years of experience aligning the actions of leaders and creatives with their dreams. Her work is centered on working within both the individual and collective level combining her private coaching practice with creating shared spaces and experiences for connection and growth,
She currently organizes and facilitates a vibrant community for entrepreneurial women and startup founders, providing them with the tools and support to navigate high-stakes environments. This passion for fostering leadership networks builds on her past experience co-organizing a community for executive and professional women.
Through both her community roles and her private practice, Heather coaches and facilitates on critical topics like leadership, burnout prevention, major career transitions, and creative expression.
Anna Wang
Holding a Master’s degree in Theoretical Economics from Tsinghua University’s School of Economics and Management, with research focused on political economics and the economic mechanisms of cross-cultural communication, and a Doctorate in Education from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, specializing in gamified learning and design—including gamified teaching methods, business gamification, and gamification for cultural and tourism products. She participated in the “Second Language Acquisition and Culture” research project under Harvard linguistics professor James, examining how vocabulary mastery, grammar rules, and cultural input influence language-learning outcomes, with related findings published in leading international journals. Her current academic and entrepreneurial interests center on EdTech and gamified solution development, immersive experience design in the tourism and cultural sectors, and innovations in cross-cultural communication and tourism business platforms.
Yuanjing Liu
Yuanjing Liu is an artist, designer, and curator trained from childhood in ink painting and calligraphy. Based in Japan since 1998 and holding an MA in Art from the University of Tsukuba, she works across traditional culture, design, and cross-cultural creative projects.
She has collaborated with leading Japanese and international agencies, curating major Sino-Japanese exhibitions and cultural programs. She later founded Tokyo Art Place in Ginza, promoting the idea that “art should be part of everyday life” and supporting emerging artists and international artistic exchange.
18:05 - 18:15 Rest
Session 3: Start Up Pitch
18:15 - 18:25
Topic 10：The world's first wheeled-biped forparcel delivery
Speaker: Nick Hafner, Refined Robotics CEO
Refined Robotics is building the world's first wheeled-biped for parcel delivery. With the potential to reduce package delivery time up to 60%, this innovation in modern robotics will solve growing labour crises in many leading countries.
18:25 - 18:35
Topic 11 ：Brings anime-style characters to lifeas interactive humanoid robots
Speaker: Pin-Chu“Koma"Yang, HatsuMuv Founder
Pin-Chu “Koma” Yang is a robotics researcher and entrepreneur specializing in humanoid motion, AI control, and expressive character robotics. With a Ph.D. from Waseda University and engineering experience at Panasonic, he founded HatsuMuv to develop the Cutieroid Project, which brings anime-style characters to life as interactive humanoid robots—including the life-size Cutieroid FA Girl Gourai created with Kotobukiya. His work aims to redefine character entertainment and merge robotics with Japan’s anime culture.
18:35 - 18:45
Topic 12: A next-generation governance and intelligence framework designed to help families, founders, and organizations
Speaker: Tetiana Bakaltseva, Simulation Intellect CCO
Tetiana Bakaltseva is the CCO of Simulation Intellect, a next-generation governance and intelligence framework designed to help families, founders, and organizations navigate increasing global complexity with clarity and continuity. Her work integrates identity capital, decision architecture, emotional governance, and AI-driven systems into a unified operating structure.
Simulation Intellect
Simulation Intellect is a multi-layered intelligence architecture designed for a world where identity, governance, and intelligent systems converge.
SI provides a continuity layer for families, founders, and organizations by integrating identity capital, values-based decision design, emotional governance, and AI-assisted intelligence into one coherent operating model.
Rather than functioning as a platform or app, SI operates through structured frameworks and guided pilots, enabling leaders to make clearer, more aligned decisions in complex, cross-border environments.
18:45 - 18:55
Topic 13: A trusted overseas lifestyle service platform designed to support individuals and families living abroad.
Speaker: Alex Chen, OLLA CEO
Alex Chen is an experienced banker, venture investor, and Web3 specialist with a strong background in commercial banking, private equity, and emerging blockchain technologies. He has been involved in entrepreneurial ventures and investments spanning upscale dining, fitness chains, beauty salon franchises, boutique accommodations, and Web3-enabled insurance businesses.
Combining traditional finance expertise with deep insight into innovative technologies, Alex brings both strategic vision and practical operational experience. He is dedicated to leveraging technology to improve daily life and building scalable, sustainable business models that connect the offline and online worlds.
OLLA is a trusted overseas lifestyle service platform designed to support individuals and families living abroad. It provides reliable and high-quality services such as home maintenance, cleaning, appliance installation, and personal support.
By integrating traditional service professionalism with modern digital tools, OLLA strives to be the go-to platform for expatriates seeking seamless and worry-free lifestyle support.
18:55 ~ 19:25 Round Table 3
Topic 14: Co-Creating Asia’s Innovation Future 3: Robotics, AI, Web3 in Synergy
Moderator：Diego Rojas, Writer, Ai Film Director
Guests：Nick Hafner Pin-Chu“Koma”Yang / Tetiana Bakaltseva / Alex Chen / Snow Suo
Snow suo
Cross-disciplinary IP incubation and product-realization specialist with a solid background in mechanical engineering and design innovation. Combines Stanford design thinking, Silicon Valley innovation mindset, and Tokyo creative-industry experience to bridge art, technology, and business. Proven track record in developing VTubers, NFT projects, original IPs, and consumer products, supported by multiple engineering patents. Experienced in product development, marketing strategy, advertising production, and IP creation. Ready to help companies build next-generation products, IP ecosystems, and cross-media commercialization strategies.
Session 4: Innovation Ecosystem
19:25 ~ 20：10 Round Table 4
Topic 15 : Innovation Ecosystem
Moderator：Nivya Chandran, Chief Technology Strategist
Special Speaker ： Yoshiro Tasaka
Since Yoshiro Tasaka joined the Shibuya City Office in January 2020, he has been building a startup ecosystem in Shibuya
He worked for the Consulate-General of Japan in San Francisco for eight and a half years. He was long involved in various activities in the SF Bay Area.
Upon returning to Japan in 2016, he worked as a board member of a startup in Tohoku and then joined Komatsu Ltd. He also served as Vice President of Landlog, a venture company established by Komatsu, NTT, SAP and OPTiUM.
In 2020, he joined the Shibuya Ward Office and launched the startup department. By 2023, his division "Shibuya Startup Support," had grown to become the organization that had invited the most international startup companies to Japan. In the same year, he founded the "Shibuya Startups Shareholder Company" together with major companies representing Shibuya, and became the company's president in 2025.
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Special Speaker ：Moeko Suzuki
After spending her high school years in London, Moeko graduated from a U.S. university in 2010. She began her career at a global market-entry consulting firm before founding Tailor Innovations Inc., where she leads international expansion support and IoT OEM/ODM projects. The company also developed its own 4K live-streaming device, “Blastreams.”
Alongside her business, she founded Startup Lady Association, a global community supporting women entrepreneurs. The organization has since grown into a multicultural ecosystem with 6 board members from diverse backgrounds, a team of over 20 contributors, and a membership of more than 2,000 women across 52 countries.
She also previously served as a board member of the Startup Ecosystem Association, promoting collaboration among startups, support organizations, VCs, corporations, universities, and government bodies to strengthen Japan’s innovation ecosystem.
Moeko currently serves on the board of La French Tech Tokyo.
Special Speaker :Dr. Joe Hug
Topic: How does education shape the future—and the next generation of innovators?
Dr. Hug is a full-time Professor of Practice in Entrepreneurial Education at iU University and Co-Founder of IOAK Learning Labo, a Tokyo-based consultancy specializing in corporate strategy and executive upskilling for multinationals.
His unique perspective bridges extreme disciplines: As a former military medicine specialist with 20 years of service in medical centers. He had specialized in neuro-trauma, anesthesiology, and emergency medicine, and served during the war in the Middle East. Later, he transitioned to academia, teaching at a medical school in Tokyo. He earned MBAs in HR/Finance, and a Doctorate in Entrepreneurial Education.
Now, he leverages this blend of frontline precision, cross-cultural insight, and business acumen to mentor startups globally with Founders Institute and Techstars.
Special Speaker ：SHOTARA KOIKE
2015: After joining Tokyu Land Corporation as a new graduate, he worked in business planning and urban hotel development and management.
2023: He joined the Shibuya Business Headquarters , where he was involved in formulating and branding strategies for the wider Shibuya area, as well as promoting the opening of large-scale complexes such as Tokyu Plaza Harajuku "Harakado" and Shibuya Sakura Stage.
2025: Promoting startup co-creation work
~ End Networking