Nobuko Asakai | Emcee

APAC Go-To-Market, Google
Nobuko is member of APAC Go-To-Market team where she helps Google develop strategies help Google grow. Prior to joining Google in 2016 Nobuko was a Managing Director at Accenture where she advised automotive and electronics companies on IoT and sustainability strategies. She spent the first half of her career as a software engineer at Red Hat with her nose buried in linux in Boston and London. She is very happy to be at Google where she gets to be nerdy and businesslike at the same time. Her current main interest is her 14 month old puppy.  

Kinuko Yasuda | Keynote

Software Engineer and Engineering Manager, Google
Kinuko is a Software Engineer, a Tech Lead, and a Manager for Google Chrome. She has been with Google for over a decade. Prior to joining Google, she was with a small startup, and was an academic after she got her Ph.D at the Keio University.

Outside work, Kinuko is occupied raising her two sons. They bring both joy and chaos to her life.

Annie Chang | Panelist

President, AC Global Solutions and Founder, Women in Technology Japan
Annie graduated from Chinese culture University in Taipei, Taiwan, with a BA in Chinese literature. She began her career in sales, working with a mainstream Japansese IT Vendor in Tokyo, Japan. She established AC Solutions in 1989 focused on software training and IT consulting, rebranded to AC Global Solutions in 2008 expanding recruiting to include Technology, Life Sciences, Management Consulting industries and Financial Services. Annie founded Women in Technology Japan in 2013 with a goal of attracting more women to the technology industry. She is a Vice Chair of Independent Business Committee at American Chamber of Commerce in Japan.  

Kaori Fujiwara | Panelist

Senior Search Strategist in Trust & Safety at Google
Kaori is a senior strategist in Trust and Safety, Google. Prior to that she was a software engineer of Google Maps and had worked as an industry analyst in a consulting firm and a researcher in an IT company. One of her challenges this year is "小1の壁", to help her older daughter to bridge the gap between daycare and elementary school. 

Reiko Hamada | Panelist

Software Engineer at Google
Reiko is a Software Engineer at Google, working in Google Search team. Before joining Google, she was working as a researcher on information retrieval and video indexing at several institutes. While working in research, she realized she wanted to work with a team to create products for users, so she decided to join Google and now she's enjoining her engineering job with her teammates. She received her Ph.D. in Engineering from the University of Tokyo, Japan. Outside of work, she likes to hanging around with friends, families and co-workers. Recently she understands she needs more exercise and looking for good sports. 

Emi Takemura | Panelist

Representative Director of Future Edu and Co-founder & Advisor of Peatix.com
Emi is an entrepreneur and an avid supporter of startup & education ecosystem. After a stint in management consulting at Monitor Company and McKinsey&Company, Emi has held a numerous senior management positions at Excite Japan, Amazon Japan, and Disney Interactive Media Group before embarking on startup journey to co-found Peatix.com in 2011. Peatix offers tools for communities and event organizers and has served over 4.6million users in 27 countries. In 2016, Emi co-founded FutureEdu Tokyo to help reimagine education with parents and educators via film screenings, events, trainings, and media. Emi also serves several public roles, including being a committee member of Information and Communications Council at Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and writes for media such as Forbes Japan.

Emi holds a B.A. in Economics from Keio University, an MBA from Wharton School, and an MA from the Lauder Institute. And she is a mother of 12 and 10 year old bilingual children.