Tokyo Executive Symposium

Chris is a director and head of the intellectual property business at Certum Group. He leads Certum’s IP licensing, funding, acquisition and litigation strategies. Chris has nearly 25 years of experience monetizing IP rights for patent holders, including for major multinational life science and healthcare companies.

Before joining Certum, Chris was a Managing Director at Fortress Investment Group for three years, where he was responsible for securing new patent investment opportunities and maximizing return on investment.

Prior to Fortress, Chris was in private practice for over 21 years at Robins Kaplan LLC. He represented plaintiffs and defendants in high-stakes IP and business disputes. He tried several patent cases to verdict, including a patent trial win that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Chris has been globally recognized for his IP strategy and monetization work in the IAM Strategy 300 and IAM Strategy Global Leader publications. He was also nationally recognized in the US as an “Intellectual Property Trailblazer” by the National Law Journal.

Yoshiki Sawa, MD, PhD is Specially Appointed Professor at the Division of Health Science, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, President of Osaka Police Hospital, and President of the Organization of Future Medicine. 

He graduated from Osaka University Faculty of Medicine in 1980 and completed his training in general, thoracic, and cardiovascular surgery (1981–1985). He obtained his PhD in 1987 and subsequently trained as a Research Fellow at the Max-Planck Institute in Germany (1987–1989) as an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow. He was appointed Lecturer at Osaka University Hospital in 1997, Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Surgery in 2000, and Professor at Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine in 2004. From 2017 to 2019, he served as Dean of the Graduate School of Medicine and Faculty of Medicine, Osaka University. Since September 2021, he has held his current positions. 

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I am a technology leader and entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in medical device development, operations, regulatory affairs, and commercialization. My expertise spans the full product lifecycle—from concept and design through manufacturing, quality management, clinical trials, regulatory submissions, and market entry. I have co-founded companies, raised over $40million in venture funding, and successfully brought novel diagnostic and surgical products to global markets.

My foundation in materials science and engineering, combined with hands-on leadership on cross-functional teams has enabled me to integrate engineering, business strategy, and compliance in regulated environments. I have served as Chief Operations Officer and Chief Technical Officer and Vice President. I have also frequently lead the team during ISO, FDA, and Regulatory Body audits and interactions. I remain committed to advancing patient care through innovative technologies, disciplined quality systems, and effective commercialization strategies. I look forward to speaking with you about the challenges your facing and that I can help.

Wang Yen Po is a seasoned biomedical engineering leader with deep expertise in the development of neuromodulation systems. With other 8 years of research and industry experience, he has led end-to-end development from early R&D to animal and clinical studies. He is also the core inventor of 8 patents (as of 2025) focusing on wireless power transfer, smart algorithms and system integration for implant medical technologies.  

Wang Yen Po holds Ph.D in Human Engineering from The University of Tokyo, worked for BOSCH, BE Health Ventures, and now as Co-founder and CTO at INOPASE. 

 A career Senior Foreign Service Officer, class of Career Minister, John Breidenstine began his assignment as Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo August 2025. Before his current assignment, John served as the Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs in Mexico City (2023-25); Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs and ASEAN Regional Senior Commercial Officer in Bangkok (2019-2023); Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs and Senior Commercial Officer for Europe at the U.S. Mission to the European Union (2015-2019); Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs in London (2011-15); U.S. Consul General in Hermosillo, Mexico (2008-11); Regional Director for Europe and Eurasia (2006-08); and Commercial Counselor in Mexico City (2003-06). 

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Eran Steinberg is the CSO at Theranova, A San Francisco medical device accelerator, where he manages a new foundry dedicated to helping foreign companies commercialize their products in the US.

Eran has an MSc. in Imaging from RIT and MSc. in Regulatory Science John Hopkins. He is the Founder/CEO of five companies with successful exits and inventor on over 300 issued patents. He is an adjunct lecturer at John Hopkins university biotech entrepreneurship program and Tel Aviv School of Medicine, a licensed USPTO patent agent, and extensive business experience in Japan.

Kenji Taira is the Representative Director of Genesis MedTech Japan. He co-founded Delawave, a Japan-based startup that developed a PMDA-approved cardiovascular optical coherence tomography (OCT) catheter and imaging system, which was later acquired by Genesis MedTech.

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Mr. Mori has been Chief Executive Officer and has served as a member of the Board since SanBio’s inception in 2001. Prior to founding SanBio, Mr. Mori was Head of New Product Development from 2000 to 2001 at Xuma, an informatics startup in San Francisco.

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Dr. Carolina Garcia Rizo is a C-suite executive with a track record of successful AI biopharma exits. She led the acquisition of Just Biotherapeutics (pioneering AI in biologics development and manufacturing) and was instrumental in the IPO of Immuneering (NASDAQ: IMRX) (AIdrug discovery with an oncology pipeline). Her experience also includes leading oncology/genomics BD at Roche, turnarounds at Cepheid (Danaher), and innovation projects for pharma clients at Monitor-Deloitte.

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Jason is the CEO of Vantis Vascular, Inc. a commercial stage medical device company focusing on improving the state of care in cardiovascular procedures. Jason has over 20 years of experience building early and commercial stage medical device companies. With roles covering early product feasibility and market assessment to growth manufacturing and large-scale commercial expansion in the US and Europe, Jason has acquired a unique breadth and depth of experience.

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Mark Amouzgar is the CEO and Co-founder of March.Health, a pioneering healthtech company recognized by the U.S.-Japan Trade Commission for its transformative potential in women’s health. Under his leadership, March.Health is developing the world’s most advanced digital twin platform for complex women’s health conditions—leveraging multi-modal data including genomics, clinical records, and patient-reported outcomes. This high-fidelity modeling empowers pharmaceutical and healthcare organizations to de-risk and accelerate clinical trials, identify novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets, and deliver truly personalized medicine.

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William (Bill) Gaede is a partner with McDermott, Will & Schulte LLP and is widely known as one of the foremost U.S. intellectual property litigators for the life sciences and medical device industries.  He serves as lead counsel for a wide range of companies and research institutes and has extensive experience in litigating life science technologies such as antibodies, proteins, small molecules, and diagnostics.  In his role as lead counsel, he works with his clients to implement several approaches to monetize intellectual property.

Dr. Bhatnagar, a physician by training, has been our Chief Executive Officer since the creation of Soleno in 2017. With nearly three decades in the biopharmaceutical and medical device industries, Dr. Bhatnagar’s experience spans development of biologics, drugs, drug-device combinations and diagnostic as well as therapeutic medical devices. At Soleno, Dr. Bhatnagar leads the team responsible for developing and commercializing VYKAT XR, the first FDA-approved therapy for hyperphagia in Prader-Willi syndrome.

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Yasushi Kajii obtained his Ph.D. degree in applied biological chemistry from The University of Tokyo. After engaging in molecular psychopharmacological research at the National Center for Psychiatry and Neurology, he held positions such as research and medical affairs at local and global pharma companies such as Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation, AbbVie, and Novartis. He joined Takeda in April 2019 to manage T-CiRA Program together with Professor Yamanaka and assumed the current position in April 2023 to oversee all R&D activities in Japan. Cross-appointed to Professor, Comprehensive Research Organization, Waseda University.

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We welcome your application to pitch your company at the Conference.

Eligibility & Application

We welcome applications from early to mid-stage companies from the following sectors:

• Medical Devices
• Diagnostics / Bio Tools
• Pharma / Biotech
• Digital Health
• Wellness & Preventive Care

There are no application or participation fees, but selected companies are responsible for their own travel and lodging costs. Applications will be evaluated based on alignment with the program theme, interest in the Japanese market, timely response, and commitment to full participation.

Application Deadline: June 30, 2025

Early submission is encouraged as space is limited.

To apply or learn more, please contact:

Steve Pollock, President, Japan Society of Northern California at steve@usajapan.org
Jack Moorman, Co-Chair, US-Japan Healthcare Connection at jack.moorman@gmail.com

Ryan has spent 35 years in the Life Sciences and Medical Device industries focusing on innovation and adding value to the companies that drive it. He has worked with numerous companies that have invented novel technologies for a range of markets, including cell and gene therapies, biotherapeutics, biotech instrumentation, in vitro diagnostics, and medical devices. At Triple Ring Technologies, Ryan leads teams of world class scientists and engineers who work at the intersection of patient needs and cutting-edge technology development.

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Dr. Shinya Yamanaka is the Director Emeritus of the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University and a Senior Investigator and the L.K. Whittier Foundation Investigator in Stem Cell Biology at the Gladstone Institute for Cardiovascular Disease (GICD). He is also President of Public Interest Incorporated Foundation, CiRA Foundation.

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Steve Pollock assumed the position of President of Japan Society of Northern California on August 23, 2022. Previously a JSNC Board member, Mr. Pollock has been actively involved with a number of the Society’s signature initiatives, including starting JSNC’s operations in Japan in 2016, leading the corporate membership committee, and serving on the steering committee for the annual Innovation Awards.

Peter Bauer is a visionary leader and seasoned expert in the medical device industry, with three decades of experience advancing innovations in cardiology and heart failure management. His career is defined by a commitment to transforming patient outcomes through groundbreaking technologies in implantable therapeutic devices and non-invasive cardiac diagnostics.

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Kirk Zeller is a medical device industry veteran whose career has been dedicated to commercializing medical device technologies around the world and building medical device companies. Kirk completed most of his undergraduate studies in Japan, started his career as a heart valve sales rep in Japan, and has spent much of his career helping companies get into international markets with a particular focus on Japan. Kirk served on the board of US-Japan MedTech Frontiers prior to it becoming US-Japan Healthcare Connection. He is a Council Leader of the US-Japan Council and co-chair of the U.S.-Japan Council Healthcare Group.

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Moe Kawai is the Marketing Lead at Simplex Quantum Inc., a pioneering MedTech company developing AI-powered solutions for heart health. She brings over a decade of cross-functional experience in healthcare, including roles in R&D, product planning, and marketing. At Simplex Quantum, she leads the global marketing strategy for NIHA-HF, the company’s flagship AI solution for early heart failure detection.

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Sam Frishman is Founder and CEO of MDC. He received a PhD in mechanical engineering from Stanford University in 2021, an MS in 2017, and a BS from Johns Hopkins University in 2015. MDC’s underlying technology was part of Sam’s PhD work.

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Abhishek Agrawal, Co-founder and CEO of Kinexcs, a startup that builds AI-driven health platforms and wearable medical devices to enable and empower people for mobility and a better quality of life. He has over 12 years of industry experience, seven out of which were spent building his startup company, Kinexcs Private Limited. Previously, he worked in high precision manufacturing sector, where he built monitoring solutions for machines used for manufacturing of implantable medical devices.

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Munemasa Sugimoto holds a Bachelor of Arts in Policy Management from Keio University and a Master of Business Administration from Washington University in St. Louis Olin Business School. He has worked at KPMG AZSA LLC (CPA auditing), Novartis Pharma K.K. (Business planning), and CDI Medical, Inc. (Management consulting) before joining the Japan Biodesign Fellowship Program at the University of Tokyo from 2019-2020.

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Dr. Ryan James is the CEO and Founder of Dopl Technologies, where he is pioneering the use of robotics and AI to deliver distributed, on-demand diagnostic care to underserved communities.

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Alex Yoshikawa, Ph.D., is the Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer of Adaptyx Biosciences. A Stanford University spin-off, Adaptyx is developing a next-generation biomonitoring platform built on over 15 years of foundational research, enabling minimally invasive, real-time, continuous sensing of small molecules and proteins.

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Dr. Burnett is a veteran in the medical device industry having founded many successful companies at various stages. During his undergraduate career at the University of Pennsylvania, he focused on bioengineering and spent a year at the Food and Drug Administration both testing devices and writing congressional reports on the current state-of-the-art devices. He then went on to Duke University where he completed his MD and his MBA. A licensed physician in the state of California, he finished his one-year internship at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida and matched for a residency in Ophthalmology at Stanford University which he deferred while he worked on starting his first venture, BAROnova.

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Ms. Oishi is the President and COO of CMIC HOLDINGS Co. Ltd., responsible for group-wide business execution.

Ms. Oishi received her Master of Science degree from the University of Tokyo. She started her career at Nikkei McGraw-Hill, Inc. in Japan (now renamed Nikkei Business Publications), as a staff writer for Nikkei Biotech, the first Japanese newsletter specializing in biotechnology. She accumulated her biotechnology industry career through working in Genzyme Japan, Ltd., and Genentech, Ltd., a Japanese Branch of Genentech, Inc. in the U.S.

Ms. Oishi joined CMIC in 1996, as Manager of the Strategy Development Department. Over the past 20 years, she has been responsible for International Business and Corporate Development, covering Japan, Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan and other regions in Asia Pacific, as well as for International Business Development which function could bring in foreign pharma and biotech companies that are interested in drug development in Japan and Asia, to start their regulatory and clinical activities in the region. With her broad international experience and strong leadership, she continuously leads the company to further globalization.

Elton Satusky is a partner in the Palo Alto office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Elton represents both public and private enterprises as their outside general counsel and serves as a key strategic advisor from their inception throughout their life cycle. He advises on complex venture capital and corporate finance transactions, corporate law and governance, mergers and acquisitions, and public offerings.

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Satoshi Ogawa, Ph.D., is a partner at TMI Associates, specializing in life sciences and healthcare. After earning his Ph.D. in Life Sciences from Kyoto University, he joined TMI Associates as an attorney. Following a three-year secondment at a law firm in New Delhi, India, he has been based at TMI’s Kyoto office since 2019.

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He received the B.S. degree, the M.S. degree in information and communication engineering, and the Ph.D. degree in electronic engineering, all from the University of Tokyo, in 1998, 2000, and 2003, respectively. From Apr. 2003 to Jun. 2006, he was an assistant professor at Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Graduate School of Dentistry, Osaka University. He became a lecturer at Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Osaka University Dental Hospital in Jul. 2006.

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After working at IBM Japan and McKinsey & Company, Masa founded AZCA, Inc. in Silicon Valley in 1985. Since then, he has been actively supporting the creation of new businesses between Japanese and U.S. companies, particularly in high-tech sectors including MedTech and life sciences. From 1987 to 2016, he also worked as a venture capital investor, first in Japan and later in Silicon Valley.

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Steve Pollock assumed the position of President of Japan Society of Northern California on August 23, 2022. Previously a JSNC Board member, Mr. Pollock has been actively involved with a number of the Society’s signature initiatives, including starting JSNC’s operations in Japan in 2016, leading the corporate membership committee, and serving on the steering committee for the annual Innovation Awards.

Seth Flaum is a partner in the New York office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and a member of the technology transactions practice. With more than 25 years of broad transactional experience, he represents life sciences companies in a wide range of strategic transactions and corporate matters.

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Joe is General Counsel of Triple Ring Technologies where he is responsible for legal affairs and intellectual property. He has over 30 years experience in Silicon Valley involving intellectual property and monetization. He has worked on patent preparation and prosecution, licensing, intellectual property litigation, purchase and sale of patents, venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions, spin-outs, joint ventures and insolvency proceedings involving intellectual property.

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After graduating from Jichi Medical University, he began practicing general medicine in the rural areas of Japan. Fumiaki joined the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at Stanford University in 2001, and was closely involved with the R&D, animal studies, and clinical studies of many medical device startups. He is also actively involved in projects with the US and Japanese regulatory agencies working to create an effective cross-border medical device eco-system. Fumiaki has also been an advisory faculty for the Stanford Biodesign Program since 2014. He is deeply involved with the development of the Japan Biodesign Program and is working diligently to establish a Silicon Valley-like medical device eco-system in Japan.