Hiroshi Sakuma

About

Japanese

Hiroshi Sakuma

Born in 1996. Mr. Sakuma has been engaged in the research on the new form of communication using avatars and agents at Osaka University. At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan, he is in charge of the exhibition "Future Virtual Being" as a director of Osaka Pavilion. He is also a principal investigator of the research on the design of future societies, a joint research project between Osaka University and the Japan Science and Technology Agency. In addition to his current position as a chairperson of Shape New World Committee, Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry and he is also a member of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Japan. In 2021, he was appointed as a team leader for a research study on the Moonshot Research and Development Program. He was selected as one of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Japan 2023 and is a recipient of the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award of the Japan Open Innovation Prize.

Updated on 2024.10.10

Biography

Born in Tokyo, 1996. Invited researcher at the Center for Global Initiatives in Osaka University. Director at the Osaka Pavilion Promotion Committee, EXPO 2025 Osaka, Japan.

Sakuma earned his bachelor’s degree in Systems Science from Osaka University (Supervisor: Hiroshi Ishiguro). During his study, he participated in a six-month internship at Panasonic Silicon Valley Lab and a one-year exchange program at the Division of Engineering Science, University of Toronto with a scholarship through Tobitate! (Leap for Tomorrow) Young Ambassador Program. He is currently a master’s student at the University of Tokyo (Supervisor: Takashi Ikegami).

Sakuma has received numerous awards during his career, including Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award of the Japan Open Innovation Prize, the 19th Osaka University President’s Award for Extracurricular Activities Special Prize, and the Endorsement Award from the Japan Student Services Organization for outstanding students. In addition, he is currently a scholarship student at the Masason Foundation, a member of the Global Shapers Community by the World Economic Forum, and was selected as one of the “7 People Under 30 Who Are Creating the Future” by NewsPicks Magazine.

Sakuma is currently a member of the advisory committee for Local Pavilion Exhibitions at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai and the directer of the Virtual Osaka Pavilion. He also supervises the city-linked metaverse “Virtual Osaka” project, chairs the student editorial board of the Japanese Society for Artificial Intelligence, and serves as an advisor to the Common Ground Living Lab in Osaka. Sakuma is a founder and the leader of the “Harmony of Humankind Project” study team of the MILLENNIA Program, the Moonshot Research and Development Program launched by the Cabinet Office (CAO), and as an advisor to the Osaka Prefectural Government’s Expert Panel on the Formulation of New Strategies.

Updated on 2022.01.27

Contact

hiroshi.sakuma@acm.org