-SEEDS Conference 2025 Speaker&Performer-

ISHIGURO Hiroshi

Robotics Scholar / Professor, Osaka University

Intelligent Robot Researcher and Scholar

Professor, Graduate School of Engineering Science, Osaka University

Born in Shiga in 1963. Robotics engineer. Professor at the Graduate School of Engineering Science, Osaka University (Distinguished Professor of Osaka University), Visiting Director of the ATR Hiroshi Ishiguro Laboratories (ATR Fellow), Project Manager of the Moonshot Research and Development Program, Theme Project Producer for Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, and CEO of AVITA, Inc.

He is engaged in research and development of teleoperated robots (avatars) and intelligent robots, and is a leading authority in the field of humanoid robots (androids) that closely resemble humans.

Awards include the Osaka Culture Prize (2011), the Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Award (both in 2015), and the Tateisi Prize (2020).

His publications include What is a Robot?, Do Robots Shed Tears?, Humans, Art, and Androids, Inside and Outside the “Waste Bag”, and (co-authored with philosopher Kiyokazu Washida) What Does It Mean to Live?. Other works include Can Androids Become Human?, What is a Robot—A Mirror Reflecting the Human Mind, How Can We Create “Humans”?—Becoming an Android Myself, Between Humans and Machines: Where Does the Mind Reside?, and Robots and Humans—What Does It Mean to Be Human?, among many others.

KAKEHI Yasuaki

Interactive Media Researcher / Artist

Professor, Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies, The University of Tokyo

Born in Kyoto in 1979. Completed his doctoral program at the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, The University of Tokyo in 2007 (Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Information Studies). After appointments at Keio University’s Faculty of Environment and Information Studies and the MIT Media Lab, he joined the University of Tokyo’s Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies in 2018, engaging in research, creation, and education. Since 2025, he has also served as Special Assistant to the President of the University of Tokyo.

He develops interactive media that combine physical materials and natural phenomena with digital technologies to expand experiences and relationships mediated by objects, the body, and space. His projects include textile design that adapts to environments while incorporating traditional craft techniques, experience design that fosters awareness of the “more-than-human,” and artistic expressions that critically reflect on the biases of technology.

Kakehi works across engineering, art, and design both in Japan and internationally, presenting at venues such as Ars Electronica Festival, YCAM Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media, ICC, LVMH Métiers d’Art La Main, and the Setouchi Triennale. His awards include the STARTS PRIZE 2022 Honorable Mention, Excellence Award in the Art Division of the 23rd Japan Media Arts Festival, ACM CHI 2017 Best Paper Award, and the Young Scientists’ Prize from the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (2014), among many others.

Recently, at the University of Tokyo, he has been involved in establishing initiatives such as the “Transboundary Co-Creation of Future Society” program and the “Sustainable Wellbeing” program, aiming to generate new interdisciplinary value through academia–industry collaboration.

KAMIE Hayato

Baritone

Born in Chiba in 1979. Graduated at the top of his class from the Graduate School of Music at Tokyo University of the Arts. He made his Italian debut at the Busseto Theatre during the Verdi Festival in Il Trovatore. In 2015, at the same festival, he drew great attention as the first Japanese baritone ever to be cast in the title role of Rigoletto.

Since then, he has performed at the Teatro Regio di Parma, Teatro Massimo Bellini in Catania, and on the latter’s Shanghai tour, as well as with the Haifa Symphony Orchestra in Israel.

In Japan, he has appeared in numerous productions with major opera companies: with Nikikai (Nabucco, Rigoletto, Don Carlo, Pagliacci, Il Trovatore, Il Trittico), Fujiwara Opera (La Traviata, La Bohème, Gianni Schicchi, Rigoletto, Il Trovatore, I due Foscari), as well as at the Nissay Theatre, the New National Theatre Tokyo, and the Sapporo Cultural Arts Theater, in leading roles. He has also been a regular performer at NHK’s New Year Opera Concert.

Recent highlights include his acclaimed performance as Malatesta in Don Pasquale at the New National Theatre Tokyo in February 2024, and in February 2025 he is scheduled to sing the title role in Fujiwara Opera’s Falstaff (Tokyo, Nagoya).

His honors include the Goto Memorial Cultural Award for New Opera Artists and the Agency for Cultural Affairs’ New Artist Award (2020). He is a member of the Fujiwara Opera Company and serves as Associate Professor of Vocal Music at the Faculty of Music, Tokyo University of the Arts.

KAWAE Yukinori

Egyptologist

Professor, Digital Humanities and Social Sciences Research Center, Nagoya University

Professor, Institute for Advanced Research, Nagoya University

Born in Hyōgo in 1972.

Lived in Egypt from 1992 to 2008, and graduated from the American University in Cairo with a degree in Egyptology. He participated in the international excavation of the urban ruins known as the “Pyramid Town” of the Giza pyramid era, serving as a block supervisor.

In 2012, he received his Ph.D. in History from Nagoya University for his research on Egyptian megalithic structures using 3D measurement techniques. He went on to serve as a JSPS Research Fellow (RPD), Collaborative Researcher at the Center for Cultural Heritage and Texts, Nagoya University, and Associate Professor at the Institute for Advanced Research, Nagoya University, before assuming his current position.

In 2015, he was named one of “Japan’s Explorers” by Nikkei National Geographic for its 20th anniversary issue, and the following year was selected as an “Emerging Explorer” by the National Geographic Society in the United States. In 2018, he was awarded the International Giuseppe Sciacca Award at Vatican City.

Currently, he leads 3D surveys of pyramid structures in the Memphis area as well as excavations of regional pyramids. He has also appeared on media programs such as NHK Special, The Most Useful School in the World, and TBS’s Discovery of the World’s Mysteries, helping to share knowledge about ancient Egyptian civilization.

His publications include Pyramids: Solving the Mysteries of Ancient Ruins with Cutting-Edge Science (Shinchosha Bunko) and World Pyramids Wonderland (Graphic-sha). He also runs a YouTube channel, Kawae Yukinori’s Ancient Egypt, which surpassed 320,000 subscribers as of June 2025.

Xiao-Qing Jiang

Guzheng Performer

Having received advanced education from an early age, she entered the Central Conservatory of Music in China at the age of 15, where she mastered traditional playing techniques from the five major schools of guzheng. She was recognized as an Outstanding Artist by the city of Beijing. After moving to Japan, she met Ryuichi Sakamoto and participated in the soundtrack of the film The Last Emperor. She also joined Sakamoto on his Japan concerts and U.S. tours.

Since then, She has been invited to perform at numerous prestigious concerts in Japan and abroad, including the 1250th Anniversary Celebration of the Great Buddha Eye-Opening Ceremony at Todai-ji Temple in Nara, the JAL Manpukuji Temple Stage of Music, the Catania International Music Festival, Expo 2010 Shanghai, the 1300th Anniversary of the Heijo Capital Relocation, and the Hibari Misora Entertainment Show "Your Hibari! My Hibari!!". Her performances have been met with critical acclaim.

From 1990, for 20 years, she was responsible for the lyrics adaptation and vocals in Suntory Oolong Tea commercials.

In 2015, she contributed guzheng solos to the soundtrack of Studio Ghibli’s film The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (Director: Isao Takahata, Music: Joe Hisaishi). In recent years, she has also frequently performed with symphony orchestras.

TAKEDA Shutaro

Director & Associate Professor, Fusion Industry Research Center, Keio University

Co-Founder & Chief Strategist, Kyoto Fusioneering Ltd.

Knight of Magistral Grace, The Sovereign Military Order of Malta

Born in Mie in 1989. Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Media Design, Keio University; Co-Founder of Kyoto Fusioneering Ltd.; Knight of Magistral Grace of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. An emerging scholar of sustainability with a diverse record of public service, including work at the United Nations, the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers, and the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.

In 2019, he co-founded Kyoto Fusioneering, Japan’s first fusion energy startup, which has since grown into a global company with over 150 employees across five countries and more than 15 billion yen in funding raised.

He graduated from Kyoto University (B.Eng.), holds a master’s degree from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. from Kyoto University. During his studies at Kyoto University, he took a leave of absence following the Great East Japan Earthquake to serve as a reserve officer in the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, and later served in Bangladesh as a Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer. After working at the Vienna headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as a United Nations officer, he assumed his current positions.

His fields of expertise are applied physics and sustainability studies. He serves as an Expert Member of the Science and Technology Council of Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), an Associate Member of the Science Council of Japan, and Representative Director of the Institute for Quantitative Sustainability Science, among other roles.

He has received numerous awards, including the Institute of Physics (UK) Early Career Award. In June 2022, he was invested as a Knight of Magistral Grace of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta—the first Japanese national to receive the honor in nearly a century.

NUMATA　Keiji

Professor,

Lab for Biomaterial Chemistry,

Chair in Polymer Material Chemistry,

Department of Material Chemistry,

Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University　

Born in Tokyo in 1980.

In 2007, completed the doctoral program in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Tokyo Institute of Technology. Received a Doctor of Engineering degree for research on the enzymatic degradation of biopolyester crystals. In the same year, also completed the Materials-based 21st Century COE Program's Project Managing Course at the same university.

After serving as a JSPS Overseas Research Fellow at Tufts University in the United States and as a Senior Research Scientist at RIKEN, he was appointed Team Leader at RIKEN in 2012. In 2020, he became a Professor in the Department of Polymer Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, and concurrently assumed the role of Team Leader of the Biopolymer Research Team at RIKEN. He currently serves as the Team Director.

In 2021, he also became CTO/CSO of Symbiobe Inc., and from 2023, he concurrently serves as a Visiting Professor at the Institute for Advanced Biosciences, Keio University. In 2016, he was appointed Research Director of JST ERATO, and in 2020, he became an Associate Editor for the journal ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering.

Since 2021, he has been the Director of the Kyoto University hub for the Ministry of Education’s Data-Driven Materials Research and Development Project. He also serves as the Director of the Kyoto University hub for the JST COI-NEXT program, which promotes co-creation for resource circulation through the development of a zero-carbon bioindustry.

Since April 2022, he has been leading the Unit for the Creation of Environmentally and Human-Friendly Soft Materials Using Bio and Polymer Big Data at the Center for the Promotion of Interdisciplinary Education and Research, Kyoto University.

YAMAGIWA Juichi

Director-General, Research Institute for Humanity and Nature (RIHN)

Born in Tokyo in 1952. Graduated from the Faculty of Science, Kyoto University, and completed coursework in the doctoral program at the Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University (Ph.D. in Science). He served as Visiting Researcher at the Karisoke Research Center in Rwanda, Researcher at the Japan Monkey Centre, Assistant Professor at the Primate Research Institute of Kyoto University, Associate Professor and later Professor at the Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, and Dean of both the Graduate School and the Faculty of Science, before becoming the 26th President of Kyoto University, a position he held until 2020.

His field of expertise is human evolution, with extensive field research on the socio-ecology of wild Japanese macaques in Yakushima and wild gorillas across Africa. He has served as President of the Primate Society of Japan, President of the International Primatological Society, President of the Science Council of Japan, and Member of the Council for Science, Technology and Innovation of the Japanese Government.

Currently, he is Director-General of the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, as well as Senior Advisor to Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.

His honors include the Minakata Kumagusu Prize and the Academia Prize.

His major publications include:

What Gorillas Have Taught Me About Life (2020, Ie no Hikari Kyōkai)

Children Who Want to Throw Away Their Smartphones: Learning to Live in an “Unknown Era” from the Wild (2020, Poplar Shinsho)

Thoughts of a Gorilla Scholar in the Jungle of Kyoto University (2021, Asahi Shinsho)

Monkey Voices, Human Words (2022, Seidosha)

The Empathy Revolution: The Evolution and Future of Social Humanity (2023, Kawade Shinsho)

Voices of the Forest, Eyes of the Gorilla: Connecting the Essence of Humanity to the Future (2024, Shogakukan Shinsho)

To Humans Who Only Quarrel: From the Land of Gorillas (2024, Mainichi Shimbun Publishing)

Ways of Thinking About Aging (2025, Bungeishunjū)

KOHKI

Musician

Born in Nagano in 1985. Immersed in music from an early age, he began teaching himself composition and production, releasing his first album as a guitarist and solo artist in 2000 at the age of 15. The following year, he made his major debut with Sony Music while also composing music for major corporate commercials.

In 2004, he renovated an old earthen storehouse in his hometown of Shinshu to create STUDIO-KOHKI, launching his career as a music producer. In 2011, he moved to Berlin, Germany, where he performed live, and in 2012 appeared as a shamisen player at JAPAN EXPO in Paris.

After returning to Japan, he produced music for shinobue (bamboo flute) player Kazuya Satō, composer of the theme song for the 2013 NHK morning drama series (asadora), leading to major releases and an appearance on the long-running TV program Daimei no Nai Ongakukai (Untitled Concert).

Since 2015, he has served as Music Director of the SEEDS Conference, overseeing the event’s overall music and performing live himself each year. He also composed the conference’s official theme, Rhapsody in Innovation.

His experimental collaborations with traditional Japanese instrumentalists, such as shakuhachi player Junya Ōkōchi, have earned high acclaim, including his stage music for the dance-theater production Tales of Love. As part of his life’s work exploring the “encounter between Japanese and Western music,” he has created, arranged, and directed the concert series Wabuyōne, which features innovative collaborations between Japanese instruments and Western orchestras.

Currently based in his native Shinshu, where he personally renovated a traditional farmhouse into his home and studio.