Shutaro Takeda, Co-Founder of Kyoto Fusioneering, wins prestigious Early Career Award
Shutaro Takeda, Co-founder and Chief Strategist of Kyoto Fusioneering Ltd, and Program-Specific Associate Professor at Kyoto University, has won the prestigious NIG Early Career Award 2021 from the Institute of Physics for his work on fusion science.
Dr. Shutaro Takeda received the NIG Early Career Award, given to scientists making exceptional early career contributions to fusion science, at the Institute of Physics Awards 2021. The award recognises his outstanding contributions to the understanding of fusion science, and his entrepreneurial leadership of converting his fusion knowledge and research into successful commercial applications. Sensing the importance of commercialization of fusion science, Dr. Takeda co-founded the first fusion startup, KyotoFusioneering, by in this way empowering and driving widespread innovation in Japan. In his service to the international organization, IAEA, he worked together with all stakeholders of global society to elevate the discussion about fusion power and has cultivated a shared vision for change based on collaboration and mutual accountability.
This award shows that expectations for fusion startups are increasing in the academic world, and it is expected to give further impetus to the industrialization of nuclear fusion in the future.
【About IOP】
The Institute of Physics (IOP), founded in 1874, is the oldest international physics society in the world, with more than 20,000 active members worldwide. Members have included some of the world’s most famous physicists, from Einstein to Stephen Hawking. Today, as an international academic exchange organization, an awarding organization, and the publisher of 85 international journals, the Institute continues to lead the development of physics around the world.
The NIG Early Career Prize is an international prize awarded annually to one person by the judging committee of each section of the Institute of Physics, and Dr. Takeda was selected by the Atomic Physics Section to receive the prize. Due to the effects of COVID-19, the award ceremony will be held remotely.
In 2019, Dr. Takeda co-founded KF, Japanese nuclear fusion startup, with Taka Nagao, Satoshi Konishi and Richard Pearson. By providing the world’s most advanced fusion engineering platform technology originating from Kyoto University to customers around the world, he has contributed to the early practical application of fusion energy. In 2020, he assumed the position of Associate Officer for Fusion Projects at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), where he facilitated forums of discussions for the global private fusion industry at the top level to promote public-private partnerships. The award was presented to him in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the development of fusion science and physics through a series of achievements that led to statements of support for the fusion industry by former U.S. President Trump and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
【Dr. Takeda’s Biography】
Born in Mie Prefecture, Japan, he is now 32 years old. After graduating from Kyoto University with a bachelor’s degree in engineering, he was admitted to the Graduate School of Energy Sciences, Kyoto University, where he was the first person in the history of the graduate school to skip a year to earn a doctorate in research on fusion energy systems. He earned a Master of Sustainability from Harvard University. In 2019, he co-founded KF when he was a Specially Appointed Assistant Professor at Kyoto University. He was the first Japanese citizen to work for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the United Nations as an Associate Officer for the Fusion Project. He is currently the youngest Program-Specific Associate Professor of Kyoto University and Strategic Advisor of KF. Has appeared on NHK programs, Japan’s only public broadcaster, and other media platforms.
【Dr. Takeda’s Comment】
“It is a great honor for me to receive the NIG Early Career Prize from the historic Institute of Physics. KF’s business concept was conceived at an international conference on private sector nuclear fusion that Professor Konishi and I hosted in 2018 at the University of Cambridge, UK. Receiving this prestigious award from the UK, the birthplace of KF, confirms once again that we are on the right track. We will continue to do our best for the development of the nuclear fusion industry.”
About Kyoto Fusioneering Ltd.
Kyoto Fusioneering is a privately funded technology start-up founded in 2019, with its headquarters in Kyoto, Japan. The company is focused on developing advanced technologies for commercial fusion reactors, with specific focus on gyrotron systems, tritium fuel cycle technologies, and breeding blankets for tritium production and power generation. The company is developing innovative reactor technology solutions that are simultaneously high-performance and commercially viable. Supporting both public and private fusion developers around the world, the company will accelerate the realisation of fusion as the ultimate energy source for humankind.
Media Contact (English and Japanese language)
media@kyotofusioneering.com
https://kyotofusioneering.com/kfwp
