Two Epistra Members Earn Doctoral Degrees (Ph.D.)

We are pleased to announce that Director & CTO Taku Tsuzuki and Research Engineer Tsuyoshi Tatsukawa completed their doctoral programs in March 2026 and were awarded doctoral degrees (Ph.D.). Tsuzuki was also selected as the representative degree recipient at Osaka University.

Degree Recipients

Taku Tsuzuki

• Position: Director & CTO
• University: Osaka University
• Graduate School / Program: Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences
• Degree: Ph.D. in Engineering
• Research Theme: Robotic Search and Early Prediction Models for Accelerating Stem Cell Manufacturing Process Development

Research Summary

Developing cell manufacturing processes in regenerative medicine has long depended on expert intuition and trial-and-error, hindered by three compounding barriers: high-dimensional parameter spaces, experimental noise, and long observation wait times. This research proposed and demonstrated an engineering approach to overcome these barriers by constructing a closed-loop search system integrating humanoid robots for high-precision parallel experimentation with Bayesian optimization AI. The work achieved an 88% improvement in differentiation efficiency in an iPSC differentiation process, quality prediction more than 50 days before culture completion, and a 43.7% reduction in defective sample rates — establishing a practical foundation for transforming cell manufacturing process development from an art dependent on individual expertise into reproducible engineering.

Comment

Having founded a company during my master’s program, taken four years of leave, and pursued research in parallel with management, I am glad to have reached this degree. Solving the fundamental difficulties faced by CGT manufacturing through AI and robotics is the core of Epistra’s business. I will continue to translate research insights into product and customer value.

Tsuyoshi Tatsukawa

• Position: Research Engineer
• University: Kyoto University
• Graduate School / Program: Graduate School of Informatics, Department of Applied Mathematics and Physics
• Degree: Ph.D. in Informatics
• Research Theme: Theoretical Study on Criticalities in High-Dimensional Neural Representation

Comment

Thanks to the support of those around me, I was able to complete my doctoral degree. I am deeply grateful. I look forward to continuing to contribute through my work, drawing on my expertise.

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Epistra aims to accelerate research and development in the life sciences through AI. These doctoral degrees represent the individual dedication of our members and embody the accumulation of expertise and its connection to practice that we as a company value.

Going forward, we will continue to apply this deep knowledge to technology, product development, and customer support, delivering new value to research and development teams.