The event session featuring Mr. Ataka, author of "Start with the Issue," and our CEO, Mr. Hirao, has been featured in "GOETHE."
The official web magazine of Gentosha, "GOETHE," has published the session content from "Climbers X 2026," in which XICA's CEO, Hirao, and Kazuto Ataka, author of the timeless classic "Start with the Issue" and a man who continues to envision Japan's future from multiple perspectives, took the stage.
The article introduces the content of the session held that day, in which we discussed in depth the "ability to formulate questions" in the age of AI. Please see below for details.
Post Overview
- Published title: [Yoshiaki Hirao x Kazuto Ataka] "AI can bring both hope and despair": Pioneers of data science discuss decision-making in the age of AI
- Publication: GOETHE
- Article URL:https://goetheweb.jp/person/article/20260806-climbers2026-1
- Publication date: 2026/08/06
Lecturer
Professor, Faculty of Environment and Information Studies, Keio University; Senior Strategist, LINE & Yahoo! Japan Corporation
Kazuto Ataka
Founding Director and Skill Definition Committee Chairperson of the Data Scientist Association. Representative Director of the General Incorporated Association, Future Worth Preserving. After working in product and business development and brand revitalization at McKinsey, he joined Yahoo! in 2008. He served as CSO (Chief Strategy Officer) for 10 years from 2012, and has held his current position since 2022. He began educational and research activities at Keio University SFC (Shonan Fujisawa Campus) in 2016, and has held his current position since the fall of 2018. Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Yale University. His publications include "Hope in the Valley of the Wind" (Eiji Publishing, 2025), "Shin-Nihon" (NewsPicks Publishing, 2020), and "Start with the Issue" (Eiji Publishing, 2010), among others.
President and CEO of XICA Corporation
Yoshiaki Hirao
He graduated from the Faculty of Policy Management at Keio University. Having experienced the bankruptcy of his father's company firsthand, he discovered the potential of statistical analysis, which he encountered during his university years, to provide management support. In 2012, he founded XICA Co., Ltd. He has supported over 300 companies, primarily enterprises, and as a "data science firm that creates a business growth spiral," he has contributed to highly reproducible business growth. His publications include "The Thinking Method of Data Analysis to Increase Sales with Targeted Attention: 6 Steps of 'Data x Intuition' for Continuous Success" (Cross Media Publishing).