Tak has invested in over 60 startups related to commerce, health care, SaaS, video, and IoT in the U.S.. To promote awareness about technology and startup culture in Asia, Tak collaborates with media companies and events, such as, TechCrunch Japan, and B Dash Camp. Tak has international experience in the IT industry both as an entrepreneur and as a senior executive. He was the CEO of mixi America. Tak holds a Master’s degree in Nano Science from Waseda University.

After 8 years at Sumitomo Bank, Makoto moved to DeNA in 2000, quickly rising to Chief Financial Officer. In 2011, he became Chairman of the Board. He led DeNA’s public offering, oversaw M&As such as the acquisition of the professional baseball team Yokohama DeNA Baystar, and created multiple joint ventures with other major corporations. In 2015, he founded beta Catalyst that focused on startups in the medical treatment, lifestyle, AI, IoT sectors. He graduated from Kyoto University, Law Department.

After working at Bain and Company, Hitoshi moved to Apple in 1992 as Director of Marketing and Communications in Japan. In 2000, he founded and received investments for Generic Media in Silicon Valley which successfully exited. His next venture was First Compass Group that connected Silicon Valley startups with partners in Japan. He became Chairman of Evernote Japan in 2010, arranging large investments and partnerships with Docomo and Nikkei. He was the first leader of SVJEN, a network for Silicon Valley Japanese entrepreneurs. He served as an advisor for business programs sponsored by the Japanese government. Hitoshi graduated from Tokyo University and received his MBA from IMD in Switzerland.