Dr. Kazuo Kyuma received a B.S. degree in Electronic Engineering from Tokyo Institute of Technology (now Institute of Science Tokyo) in 1972 and a Ph.D. in the same field from the same institution in 1977. He joined Mitsubishi Electric Corporation in 1977 and was assigned to its Central Research Laboratory (now the Advanced Technology R&D Center). There, he led research, development, and commercialization of optical fiber sensors, optical neurochips, artificial retina chips, image processing systems, and related technologies. He subsequently held several senior executive positions, including General Manager of the Advanced Technology R&D Center, Executive Officer responsible for Corporate R&D, and Senior Vice President of the Semiconductor & Device Business Group. He was appointed Executive Vice President of Mitsubishi Electric Corporation in 2011.

From March 2013 to February 2018, Dr. Kyuma served as a full-time executive member of the Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (CSTI), Japan’s highest science and technology policymaking body chaired by the Prime Minister. In this role, he contributed to the comprehensive planning and coordination of Japan’s science, technology and innovation policy, played a key role in launching and promoting major national initiatives such as ImPACT and SIP, and led the formulation of Society 5.0, Japan’s vision for a future human-centered society enabled by advanced technologies. In 2018, he was appointed President of the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), where he promoted innovation in food and agriculture by advancing the adoption of AI, robotics, sensors, and other digital technologies. Since April 2026, he has served as Senior Executive Adviser to the President of NARO.

Dr. Kyuma has been a Visiting Associate at the California Institute of Technology and has also served as a Visiting Professor at several universities, including Tokyo Institute of Technology, Osaka University, Kobe University, and Keio University.

Dr. Kyuma is a Life Fellow of the IEEE, Optica, the Japan Society of Applied Physics, the Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers (IEICE), the Society of Instrument and Control Engineers (SICE), and the Laser Society of Japan. He is also a member of the Engineering Academy of Japan.