Yayoi appoints former Google executive Ryuichi Imaizumi as new CTO

Yayoi Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, President and CEO: Kenichiro Muto; hereinafter referred to as "Yayoi") is pleased to announce that Ryuichi Imaizumi has been appointed Executive Officer, CTO, effective June 29, 2026, with the aim of strengthening its management structure.

Background of Appointment

Yayoi has been providing software and services, including the "Yayoi Series" business system for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with the mission of "Creating a virtuous cycle in Japan by energizing SMEs."

Currently, the business environment is in the midst of rapid technological innovation, including AI. By integrating the expertise of Mr. Imaizumi, who has outstanding achievements in both cutting-edge technology development at a global level and large-scale organizational management, with Yayoi's solid customer base of over 4 million cumulative registered users, we will strongly promote the following initiatives:

Creation of next-generation business experiences through the implementation of cutting-edge technologies (AI, LLM, etc.) in products.

Fostering a global standard development culture and expanding the engineering organization.

Accelerating decision-making and capitalizing on technology by building company-wide technical infrastructure.

Future Outlook

Under Mr. Imaizumi's strong technical leadership, we aim not only to enhance the value of existing products but also to create new innovations utilizing AI technology.

Yayoi will continue to provide even more innovative services to realize its mission of "Creating a virtuous cycle in Japan by energizing SMEs."

Executive Officer, CTO Ryuichi Imaizumi

Biography

Born January 30, 1976

Graduated from the Faculty of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, and completed his Master's degree at the Graduate School of the same university. He joined Sony Corporation in 2000, where he worked on software frameworks for "Bravia." He joined Google in 2008. He led the smartphone adaptation of the search system from its early stages and released a large-scale ranking update known as "Mobilegeddon" in 2015. In the same year, he was appointed Engineering Director. From 2016, he served as Tokyo Engineering Site Lead, driving significant organizational expansion of the Japanese subsidiary. He subsequently led engineering teams for the web ecosystem and product development teams for Japan. From January 2025, as a Principal Software Engineer, he has been involved in the development of new search products utilizing AI/LLM, such as "AI Overviews" and "AI Mode."

Joined Yayoi Co., Ltd. in 2026 and appointed Executive Officer, CTO. Master's degree from the Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo.

Comment from Ryuichi Imaizumi

I am deeply honored to join Yayoi as CTO, a company that supports small businesses across Japan and possesses a strong customer base.

At Sony and Google, I have continued to develop with the mission of transforming society and user convenience through technology. In particular, I believe the recent advancements in AI will fundamentally change the way we approach business efficiency.

Leveraging my past experience, I will fuse cutting-edge technology with Yayoi's highly reliable products to provide unprecedented value to our customers, and contribute to building a robust organization where engineers can exert their full potential and grow.

About Yayoi Co., Ltd.

Yayoi is a company that develops, sells, and supports the "Yayoi Series" of software that assists with back-office operations, with the mission of "Creating a virtuous cycle in Japan by energizing SMEs." The "Yayoi Series" has over 4 million registered users and is used by many customers.

By combining Yayoi's strengths—its customer network, accumulated vast data, industry-leading customer service center, and relationships with partners—with technologies such as AI, we will support SMEs in achieving their desired future.

Representative: Kenichiro Muto, Representative Director, President and CEO

Founded: 1978

Number of Employees: 801 (as of September 2025)

Business Activities: Development, sales, and support of business software and related services

Headquarters Location: Akihabara UDX 21F, 4-14-1 Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

URL: https://www.yayoi-kk.co.jp