Celebrating Diversity: EY Japan Announces Six Winning Women Entrepreneurs for 2025

Celebrating Women Entrepreneurs in Japan

In a significant announcement, EY Japan has selected six remarkable women entrepreneurs for the EY Winning Women 2025 program, aiming to empower female leaders in the business sector. This initiative is a part of the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women (EWW) program, which seeks to support women who have made strides in their respective fields by providing them with mentorship, business growth strategies, and networking opportunities. The chairperson and CEO of EY Japan, Yoshio Takita, expressed the organization’s commitment to addressing societal challenges by nurturing female entrepreneurs who are capable of driving innovation.

A Platform for Growth

The selected women will partake in the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women Asia-Pacific program, which includes access to influential networks of other entrepreneurs and corporations. Participants will present their business plans at an awards ceremony scheduled for December 9, where they will have the opportunity to showcase their innovative ideas. This year's selection highlights a remarkable focus on female representation in STEM fields, with a significant number of applicants hailing from life sciences.

Eri Sekiguchi, the leader of EWW in Japan, emphasized the criteria used for selection, which included innovation, entrepreneurship, global impact, and growth. She stated, "We want the awardees to inspire each other and build valuable networks. Through our contributions of business insights, we aim to support the scaling-up of women entrepreneurs in Japan."

Spotlight on the Finalists

The finalists for EY Winning Women 2025 include:

1. Shizuka Akiie - CEO of Cyfuse Biomedical, a pioneer in regenerative medicine utilizing bio 3D printing technology. Founded in 2010 to provide new treatment options for patients, Cyfuse has partnered with numerous research institutions and successfully entered the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Growth Market in 2022.
- Website: cyfusebio.com

2. Shoko Ubukata - CEO of elleThermo, a Tokyo-based startup backed by her experience as an associate professor at Tokyo University of Science. She is known for inventing semiconducting thermal power generation and pushing the boundaries in physics and materials science.
- Website: ellethermo.com

3. Midori Ogino - CEO of Brown Sugar 1st, which promotes organic and plant-based products across Japan. With initiatives aimed at introducing innovative products like