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Medical Innovation Support Office (MEDISO).Medical Innovation Support Office

Makoto Shigematsu

Representative Director, Kai Fostering Partners Inc.

He worked on a new project research and development, trial manufacture, mass production, and commercializing of glass delay line element for VTR at Asahi Glass Co., Ltd. He moved to CSKVC by making use of his relevant experience. As a venture capitalist, he engaged mainly in establishing, financing, fostering, and managing venture companies. He practiced monetizing of novel technologies, timely financing, establishing organization and management, sharing an exit strategy as a milestone, active use of intellectual property rights (open and close), and business talks and negotiations (not bargaining) hated by engineers. He has providing support for company’s growth fostered by competition and cooperation, while being employed by traditional companies for 20 years and by venture companies for 20 years with an understanding exactly the opposite of the corporate culture of both.

Katsuya Hashizume

Leader of the Group for Investment Through Collaboration Between Industry and Academia, JAFCO Co., Ltd.

After graduating with a master’s degree from the Graduate School of Media and Governance, Keio University, he joined JAFCO Co., Ltd. Since he joined the company, he has consistently engaged in investment in university-launched venture companies. He made several investments in life science companies (gene analysis, diagnostic devices such as POCT, surgery support robots, medical devices such as those for cerebrovascular thrombectomy, regenerative medicine, and bioinformatics) at the seed or early stage in the company’s lifecycle. He also holds the positions of outside director of multiple university-launched venture companies. He is working on commercializing the technology seeds possessed by research institutes such as universities as a representative project promoter of the Program for Creating Start-ups from Advanced Research and Technology (START) operated by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST).

Bunsei Kawakami

He graduated with a master’s degree from the Division of Agricultural Chemistry, Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University. He holds a doctoral degree in agriculture. He was in a department for healthcare project in a private company for 31 years, where he was involved in product development and marketing of chemical reagents and devices for life science research and in vitro diagnostic reagents and devices. After retirement, he worked for a public industry support organization for five years, where he supported product development (including intellectual property and response to laws and regulations) and sales channel development (including overseas) promoted by companies aiming to newly enter the healthcare business. He hopes to provide support for product development and sales channel development of medical venture companies by using his knowledge, experience, and human network of connections that he has gained through these business activities.

Yukari Kume

She graduated with a master’s degree from the Graduate School of Philosophy, Sophia University. After studying in the US for three years, she returned to Japan to work as an interpreter and translator of English at a semiconductor manufacturer and an IT company for more than 10 years. In 2012, she joined Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc., to translate technology into English and was involved in surveys of overseas laws and regulations and the technical regulations governing suitability assessment and authorizations in the fields of railways, aircrafts, and consumer products. From November 2015, she has provided various types of surveys as a freelance consultant.

Hirofumi Usami

Intellectual Property Strategy Advisor, Intellectual Property Strategy Network, Inc.

Work Experience: He successively held the following positions: Patent License GM in Intellectual Property Department of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited; a permanent member of Industrial Property Right Committee of Osaka Pharmaceutical Industries Association; a visiting professor at the Graduate School of Law, Kyoto University; Director Responsible for Industry of Japan Intellectual Property Association; a visiting professor in the Dept. of Science and Technology Law, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology (Taiwan); and a professor at the Graduate School of Intellectual Property, Osaka Institute of Technology. From 2013, he became an advisor at Intellectual Property Strategy Network, Inc.

His book: Patent Strategies Necessary to Develop Your Company
His Paper: Yakugaku Zasshi, Patent Management, Pharm Stage, International pharmaceutical intelligence, Research on Intellectual Property, Tokugikon, Intellectual property management, Pharm Tech Japan, Science & industry, etc.