Masato Takahashi
Japan
CAREER Enrolled in April 2009; withdrawal from the doctoral program with the completion of course requirements in March 2012
In the KMD Doctoral Program, I joined the Reality Media Project and studied entertainment computing. With the expert advice of Professor Masahiko Inami and other researchers, I was able to build numerous implementations, and through that process saw a vast improvement in my expression skills. Doing a joint project with excellent students overseas was also a valuable experience.
I currently work as a creator specializing in entertainment under the name “Bye Bye World.” I’m involved in a wide range of products and projects, including toys, installations and robots. In June 2014, I was appointed chief creator at Yoshimoto Robotics Laboratory, where I oversee and develop the official entertainment app for “Pepper,” SoftBank’s latest robot. I look forward to further explorations in entertainment and technology.
(This article was written in March 2015.)