Masaaki Kawai

Business Development Director, NGK Automotive Ceramics USA

After completing his master’s degree in Materials Engineering from Nagoya University in 2002, Masaaki joined NGK Insulators, Ltd., a company specializing in ceramic technology. As a researcher, he focused on developing ceramic filters for diesel vehicle exhaust gas purification and Sub-nano Ceramic Membranes for molecular separation processes.

In 2012, he was assigned to the United States as a representative of the Corporate R&D, where he gained experience in investigating new technologies and marketing developed products. Upon returning to Japan in 2018, he took on the role of Marketing Manager for the new product EnerCera, an ultra-thin and compact Li-ion rechargeable battery. His responsibilities included application development, joint promotions with other companies, participation in domestic and international exhibitions such as CES and CEATEC (Japan), and the introduction of digital marketing strategies.

Since 2021, he has been involved in the new marketing unit, Corporate NV (New Value) Creation. In October 2023, he took charge of Carbon Neutrality business development (Direct Air Capture, Sab-nano Ceramic Membrane etc.) in the North American market as the Business Development Director.