Beyond Next Ventures

Kengo Ueha has more than 20 years of experience in venture capital. He joined Beyond Next Ventures as a Co-Founding Partner in 2015 and became Managing Director in 2023, where he oversees fund management, corporate operations, and the firm's investment activities. He previously worked at JAFCO starting in 2003, handling investment execution and finance/administrative operations, and holds a Bachelor of Laws from Chuo University.

Tsuyoshi Ito founded Beyond Next Ventures in 2014 with the goal of returning financial gains to academia and supporting the deep-tech startup ecosystem. He previously joined JAFCO in 2003, where he led investments in university spin-offs, and currently serves as an outside director for portfolio companies and as a Visiting Professor at Nagoya and Hiroshima Universities. He holds a Master's in Chemical Engineering from Tokyo Institute of Technology.

Yuichiro Sano joined Beyond Next Ventures in 2021 and leads the firm's India Investment Team, focusing on investments in Indian startups and the firm's global impact investing strategy. He previously spent over 15 years working in emerging markets at JBIC and JICA, including three years in India managing financial projects across debt and equity and starting startup investment programs. He holds a Bachelor's degree from Waseda University and a Master in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School.

Hiroyuki Kageyama joined Beyond Next Ventures in August 2023 as a venture capitalist focused on bridging science and its application in society. Before that, he worked at Accenture from 2020 as a strategy consultant on new business development projects for clients in the telecommunications and financial industries. He holds a graduate degree from the Graduate School of Science at The University of Tokyo, where his research covered ultrafast vibrational dynamics of molecules under intense laser fields using femtosecond laser equipment.

Keigo Yato holds a Ph.D. and previously conducted research on hepatitis vaccines and viral immune response at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases. He joined Beyond Next Ventures as a student intern during his doctoral studies and became a full-time employee in April 2022, where he focuses on investments in biotechnology and drug discovery.

Masahiro Goto joined Beyond Next Ventures in April 2024, where he focuses on investing in the climate tech sector, with an interest in clean and domestic energy in Japan. He began his career at Toyota Tsusho Corporation in April 2013 trading automotive chemical materials, later working on materials engineering at Toyota Motor Corporation and hydrogen projects in Shanghai, before joining Mitsubishi UFJ Capital in January 2022 to invest in startups with a focus on deep tech. He holds a master's degree in engineering from the Graduate School of Pure and Applied Sciences at the University of Tsukuba.

Akiko Fujii studied supply chain management and customer satisfaction at university and holds a Master's degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from Tokyo Institute of Technology. In April 2021 she joined SMBC Nikko Securities' Investment Banking Division, supporting M&A and fundraising execution primarily for financial institutions. She joined Beyond Next Ventures as a venture capitalist in December 2024.

Former Executive Vice President of Kobayashi Pharmaceutical with over 40 years in medical device manufacturing and sales in Japan and the US.

Akito Arima joined Beyond Next Ventures in 2019, where he invests in Agri-FoodTech, bio-manufacturing, and climate tech. He was named Partner in 2022 and Head of the Open Innovation Department in 2025, and founded the TECHNIUM Global Conference. He serves as Project Manager for the MAFF SBIR program and Representative Director of Next Prime Food, previously worked in the Grain Division at Marubeni Corporation, and holds a degree in Biosciences and Informatics from Keio University.

Founder/President of Anioplex, LLC; a biopharma executive, scientist, and patent/corporate attorney, formerly a USPTO pharmaceutical patent examiner and researcher at Harvard, Kyoto University, and UCLA.

Representative of SubTonic Consulting with an MBA from the University of Chicago and cross-industry experience spanning medtech, steel, wine, and software.

Karthik Varada works on new investments in Indian startups and supports the growth and impact visibility of portfolio companies at Beyond Next Ventures. He previously was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Tokyo studying ESG and climate-tech investments, and was a founding member of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation's Asia Women Impact Fund, an impact fund focused on gender equality. He holds a PhD and a master's degree from the University of Tokyo, and an undergraduate engineering degree from IIT Hyderabad.

Katsuya Hashizume is a Partner and Head of the Investment Department at Beyond Next Ventures, where he has led investment strategy since 2022. He joined the firm in 2020 and brings more than 15 years of experience nurturing academic ventures, supporting startups from pre-seed through commercialization and growth. His earlier career includes a Group Leader role at JAFCO and work as a representative promoter for JST START, and he holds a Master's degree from Keio University.

CEO of FOODBOX Co., Ltd., providing consulting in food and agriculture to companies, local governments, and farmers.

Assistant Professor at Tokyo Jikei University and former PMDA medical device reviewer, researching medical IT and devices and advising ventures.

Founder of the Japan Biodesign Association, former Chairman of Terumo Corporation, and CEO of Art Management Shimanami LLC.

Mana Yada graduated from ICU and began her career at a recruitment agency, working on career transition support for professional services roles and corporate executive positions. Over her career she supported roughly 50 client companies and more than 900 candidates, served as a guest lecturer at a university, handled internal recruiting, and worked as a Director leading her own team. She later earned an MBA from ESADE Business School before joining Beyond Next Ventures, where she works in the HR Strategy Group.

Associate Professor at Kyoto University's Society-Academia Collaboration for Innovation, former McKinsey consultant, co-founder of GRA&GREEN, and a Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 honoree.

Masaya Eshita is an Executive Officer and Head of the Fund & Corporate Division at Beyond Next Ventures, where he oversees fund administration, finance and accounting, HR, general affairs, and public relations, and manages the firm's Beyond BioLAB TOKYO shared wet-lab facility. He joined the firm in 2020 and was appointed Executive Officer in 2026. He previously worked at LEVEL-5 Inc. starting in 2011 and at Recruit Career (now Indeed Recruit Partners) from 2018, and holds a B.A. in Economics and Business Administration from Kyushu University.

A physician with over 10 years in medical devices and drug development, including four and a half years as a reviewer at Japan's PMDA, now working in clinical development consulting.

Auditor at MIRAI NIHON VENTURES and former Deputy Head of Corporate Clients at SMBC Nikko Securities with 26 years of IPO and startup support experience.

Miyu Yamamoto joined Beyond Next Ventures in November 2023, working on open innovation and acceleration with a focus on supporting academic research funding in Japan. She previously worked at Nomura Research Institute on industry-academia-government collaboration, startup support, and new venture development in the medical and energy sectors, and held a part-time role at the R&D startup BIOTA doing research, grant management, and recruiting. She completed graduate studies in the Department of Earth and Planetary Environmental Science at the University of Tokyo.

CEO of Medical Lab Partners Corporation with 17 years of medical device development experience at Terumo, now consulting on medical device development.

Seiichi Saito began his career at Maruha Nichiro and later worked at the Australian Embassy in Japan before joining the JAFCO Group in 1998. From 2008 he worked on Fund of Funds formation and investment operations at AI Capital, and in 2014 became a Director at Rothschild & Co, managing European private equity funds with investors across Japan and Asia. He joined Beyond Next Ventures in April 2023, where his role focuses on investor relations. He holds an Economics degree from Sophia University, Tokyo, and an MBA from Warwick Business School in the UK.

A Medicinal Creation Advisor and Representative Director; co-founder of RaQualia Pharma and AskAt, and a professor at Chiba University Graduate School of Medicine.

Shota Sagiyama joined Beyond Next Ventures in 2017, where he focuses on executive search and team building for deep-tech startups, helping recruit co-founders and CXOs. He leads the firm's INNOVATION LEADERS PROGRAM, which has produced over 50 startup executives and supported 300+ strategic hires for portfolio companies. He is a certified Career Development Advisor and Career Consultant, and previously built a management talent practice for university ventures at Tokio Marine Nichido Career Service starting in 2007, after joining Quick Co., Ltd. in 2002.

Representative Partner at EDiX Professional Group / Edogawa Certified Public Accountant Office. A certified public accountant who has helped many startups, including life science and IT companies, go public and advises on innovation policy.

Takehiko Sawabe leads Beyond Next Ventures' investments in biotech start-ups. He previously served as Managing Director at INCJ, backing biotech companies including Stella Pharma, Megakaryon, and Scohia Pharma, and earlier held roles at Meiji Seika (as a medicinal chemist and later in business development), Johnson & Johnson (medical device business development), and AbbVie (Japan portfolio management). He holds a Master's degree from the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and an MBA from GLOBIS University.

Affiliated with the Kawasaki Institute of Industrial Promotion, with drug discovery and regenerative medicine experience at Mitsubishi Tanabe and Takeda Pharmaceutical.

Yasutaka Kashiwagi trained clinically at Jikei University Kashiwa Hospital before working at the global consulting firm ZS Associates, where he supported new business development strategy, pricing, and product evaluation for pharmaceutical and medical device companies. He joined Beyond Next Ventures in 2025 to focus on investments in medical devices and digital health. He holds an M.D. from Jikei University School of Medicine.

A patent attorney and IP strategist with a background at Astellas Pharma, undefeated in IP litigation, and a specially appointed professor at Tohoku University.

Hiroki Mikuni is an HRBP at JERA Co., Inc.'s Management Strategy Division. He began his career in executive recruitment focused on the manufacturing sector, later specializing in chemical industry placements before transitioning to venture capital-backed HR support. At Beyond Next Ventures, he led portfolio company HR initiatives including recruitment, labor practices, and organizational development, while facilitating community-building among portfolio companies.

Taroh Hamada is a public sector consultant with experience in ecosystem building and open innovation across multiple organizations. He has held managerial positions at PwC, Arsaga Partners, Ignition Point, and Deloitte, where he worked on startup policy development and government agency initiatives, and served as an investor at Beyond Next Ventures focused on deep-tech investments. He holds a BA from Akita International University, studied counter-terrorism at the University of Malta, and completed an MPP in Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy from the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies.