Rika Nakazawa

Bio

Rika is a senior technology executive, VC investor, best-selling author, and frequent public speaker on breakthrough innovation from AI, Quantum science, Space-tech, and their transformational impact on industries, society, and the future of economies. She is Chief Commercial Innovation at NTT, a leading technology and business services, and solutions provider with over 340,000 innovators worldwide. At NTT, she focuses on advancing commercial and sustainability applications of Photonic networks and Space & Satellite intelligence, as well as orchestrating impact initiatives across global public and private sectors via the World Expo. Rika was recognized on Forbes 50>50 list in Innovation. And for two consecutive years, she has been awarded “Power 70” and “Power 80” recognition for the Women of Channel awards with The Channel Co’s CRN network. She has also been ranked as "Top 100 in Emerging Tech" by Women of the Future.

Trilingual in Japanese, German, and English, Rika grew up in Japan and moved to the US to attend Princeton University. Rika lived in Silicon Valley for 18 years and has worked internationally in senior executive roles in strategy, business development, consulting, and marketing with Fortune 500 companies - NVIDIA, Accenture, Capgemini, Sony - and venture-backed startups. She is a digital innovation veteran and has served on multiple boards in AI, Next-gen Computing, Material Science, and Cybersecurity ecosystems.

Rika is a PhD candidate at the intersection of AI / Quantum and industrial development, and holds a Master's Degree (MSc) from the UK's University of Leeds. She is the author of the Amazon bestseller “Dear Chairwoman,” which explores the evolution of corporate board governance. Her second book, featuring the intersection of sustainability, digital innovation, and the pandemic, called “Beyond the Black Swan: How the Pandemic and Digital Innovation
Intensified the Sustainability Imperative - Everywhere", was released by business/academic publisher Taylor & Francis.