We are pleased to report that our CEO, Tomokazu Iwabuchi, was featured in Forbes JAPAN's ongoing series "MAKERS OF A NEW ERA," recommended by Masaki Kawai, representative of UNERI Inc., in the segment "The New Generation I'm Rooting For."
About the Series
"MAKERS OF A NEW ERA" is a recurring feature in which leading figures across various fields — acting as "selectors" — introduce the next generation of talent they personally admire and support. This time, the selector was Masaki Kawai, representative of both IMPACT SHIFT (a general incorporated association) and UNERI Inc., which nurture and invest in startups tackling social issues.
About Selector Masaki Kawai
Kawai founded UNERI in 2020 to support and invest in social-issue startups. He also serves as representative of "IMPACT SHIFT," one of the industry's largest events for impact startups, and has recently been advancing partnerships with foundations and VCs around the world.
The Feature
Young founders driven by passion and purpose.
All three started their companies while still students, choosing not to take a conventional job but instead placing themselves at the front line of work directly tied to someone else's wellbeing. (…) Iwabuchi continues to design change in cities with the aim of "data-driven urban development." He is a translator who reads the flow of people.
From Masaki Kawai's commentary
The accompanying profile introduced him as follows.
CEO of Urbanix, Urban Strategist. Majored in urban design at Kyushu University Graduate School; founded the company in 2023. Handles everything from research and analysis to spatial design and IT development in one integrated practice, working to build new area-evaluation metrics and create new value.
The same feature also introduced Eriku Furutsu, CEO of LacuS, which offers the complete-nutrition food "Me ICE" for seniors, and Manami Yamada, CEO of MYLILY, which runs a menopause-focused online medical consultation service.
Kawai and I have known each other for some time, and being introduced this way made me realize, once again, that he had been watching what I've been thinking through on the ground of urban development. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank him.
Publication
Forbes JAPAN — Series: "MAKERS OF A NEW ERA"