Naoki Kamimaeda

Naoki Kamimaeda leads the Institute’s work on Physical AI & Robotics.

He is a deeptech-focused cross-border investor and advisor connecting Europe with Japan and the wider Asia-Pacific region. He is a Venture Partner at IQ Capital, one of the UK’s leading deeptech venture capital firms, and Senior Advisor to the Matsuo Institute, a leading AI research institute in Japan.

Previously, he was Partner and Head of Europe at Global Brain, where he established and led the firm’s European investment activities. He also pioneered Global Brain’s AI and cybersecurity investment practice as its first specialist. Earlier in his career, he worked at Sony as an AI researcher, developing a company-wide cloud AI platform and deploying it across Sony’s products and services. He later became a PlayStation engineering manager and was part of the PlayStation 4 launch team in San Francisco.

His interests include the commercialisation of physical AI and robotics, bringing together perspectives from engineering, venture investment and cross-border collaboration.