Katsuki Ono

After graduating from the School of Commerce at Waseda University, I completed my studies at the university’s Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies in March 2021.

Currently, as a freelancer, I take on contract work from startup-related companies, universities, and other organizations, while also running Equal Frontiers, an employment placement service for people with disabilities that I founded.

I live with a progressive neurological disorder of unknown cause, similar to ALS. As a person with a disability myself, I currently rely on a feeding tube and a mechanical ventilator to sustain my life.

At Araya, I am engaged in the development of Brain-Machine Interfaces (BMIs) that are easier for everyone to use, serving as both a BMI Development Engineer and a BMI Pilot.

Major Achievements:

-3rd WASEDA DEMO DAY: SUMS × WASEDA EDGE Award and Professor Takiguchi Mentor Award
– SUMS PITCH: Excellence Award
– Social Innovation Challenge Japan 2021 (organized by the United Nations Development Programme and other organizations): Finalist
– Youth Co:Lab Summit 2022 (organized by the United Nations Development Programme and other organizations): Japan Representative
– Certified as an “Inno-β” under the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications’ INNO-vation Program
– and others