Company

Michele Guarnieri is the Co-Founder and CEO of hibot Corp., serving in this role since 2020. By integrating robotics and digital platforms, he is redefining the future of infrastructure inspection and maintenance. Leading a team of engineers from over 20 countries, he is dedicated to solving the most challenging issues facing industrial infrastructure, striving toward a safer and more sustainable society.
Michele earned his degree in Computer Science from the University of Verona, Italy, before coming to Japan as a recipient of the MEXT scholarship from the Japanese government. He later obtained a Master’s degree and a Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from the Tokyo Institute of Technology.
His leadership has driven numerous award-winning projects, earning prestigious accolades such as the Japan METI Robot Award, Edison Gold Award, recognition as a World Economic Forum "Technology Pioneer" , and the IEEE Inaba Technical Award. In 2019, he was honored with the Rotary Galileo Galilei Award for outstanding contributions to the field of engineering.
Since 2019, Michele has also served as the Asia-Pacific Coordinator for Sprint Robotics, actively advancing robotics technology in industrial inspection and maintenance. With exceptional technical expertise and visionary leadership, he continues to drive innovation in the robotics industry.

Akira Saito is the CFO, Director, and Head of the Administrative Division at hibot corp., overseeing finance, business development, HR, and administrative operations with expertise in financial strategy, risk management, and cross-industry partnerships. Passionate about Japan's startup ecosystem, he supports seed and early-stage companies through strategy, market analysis, and fundraising. Previously, he provided regulatory compliance, IPO advisory, and consulting at Ataraxia Partners, and as CFO of TakeMe Co., Ltd., led $10M in fundraising and quadrupled revenue. With 15+ years at Mizuho Securities, Akira traded derivatives for 10+ years, and in the 3+ years in IBD, structured $4B in convertible bonds, earning the President’s Award all three years. He also spent 5 years at Goldman Sachs in Japan, NY, and London, optimizing technology and operations. A University of Pennsylvania honors graduate in International Relations, he is fluent in English, Japanese, and French.

Takeru Yamamoto is the Chief Operating Officer and Executive Officer of hibot Corporation, serving as the Head of the Operations Division.
In 2022, he joined hibot Corporation and contributed to establishing its German subsidiary, hibot Europe GmbH, while advancing the company’s Robot as a Service (RaaS) business. By 2024, he became COO, overseeing sales, business development, and operations. Known for his adaptability, he drives innovation and collaboration across global teams.
He built extensive expertise in aircraft maintenance operations at All Nippon Airways and Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from Tokyo Metropolitan University and an MBA from the University of Southern California, where he developed international business skills and leadership capabilities.
Fluent in Japanese and English, he excels in managing relationships with both domestic and international clients and partners.
Outside of work, he is a devoted parent and integrates meditation and mindfulness practices, including Zen, into his routine to maintain a balanced and refreshed lifestyle.

Paulo is the Chief Robotics Officer at hibot. In this position, he is in charge of leading the Engineering department by combining development works, R&D efforts and production activities. He oversees all technical teams and helps the Project Managers to set priorities, assign resources and validate the outcome of all projects. Paulo is also in charge of creating, improving and enforcing standards to better integrate all teams and to bring to the production line robotic solutions that no one has ever created before.
As one of the founders of hibot, Paulo's target has always been to makes jobs safer and more efficient and to save lives with robots. He started his carrer in Brazil as a mechanical engineer working for Embraer and then moved to Japan to pursue higher education in robotics, at the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

Hiroya Yamada is an Executive Officer at hibot Corp., responsible for the R&D department.
In this role, he proposes new robotic concepts and technologies to address various challenges that cannot be solved using conventional methods. He demonstrates their effectiveness through prototyping and testing. Hiroya excels at solving difficult and complex tasks by flexibly incorporating innovative robotic solutions.

The robots he has developed at hibot include long-reach robotic arms, pipeline inspection robot systems, crawler-type robots, and power line maintenance robots. These robots not only free workers from dangerous tasks but also enable them to perform jobs previously impossible and enhance work precision.

Before taking on his current position, Hiroya served as an assistant professor at Tokyo Institute of Technology (now Tokyo Science University), where he focused on snake robots and conducted research on disaster rescue robots, arm-type robots, and robots for nuclear disaster scenarios.

He holds both a master’s degree and a doctorate in engineering from Tokyo Institute of Technology. His leadership and technical excellence are the driving force behind hibot Corp.'s growth and technological innovation.

Peter is a dynamic manufacturing leader with over 20 years of expertise in design for manufacturing across diverse industries. As Head of Production at hibot, he drives the seamless transition from prototype to full-scale production, establishing robust supply chains to bring cutting-edge robotic solutions to market.
With a background in mechanical engineering and mold making, Peter merges deep product design knowledge with hands-on manufacturing expertise. He is relentless in optimizing workflows, streamlining engineering processes, and automating data management. His vision for a "single source of truth" ensures seamless, high-precision communication between hibot’s engineers and suppliers, accelerating innovation and efficiency.

After graduating Keio University in 1986, Kazuhito joined Nomura Securities Co., Ltd as a retail sales at Utsunomiya, Wakayama and Yokohama. After that, he also experienced wholes sales division in charge of listed companies and pre-IPO companies. He experienced a branch manager in some branches such as Shimonoseki, Matsumoto and the head office sales department. In 2014 he was an executive manager of the financial public agency and a deputy director of Tsukuba University. After backing to Nomura Securities in 2017, he founded Yui Capital Partners Co., Ltd. in 2018.

After graduating from Tokyo Institute of Technology, he worked at a financial company before joining Japan Asia Investment, where he invested in technology-based venture companies. After managing an industry-academia collaboration fund, he established funds for telecom carriers and high-tech ventures, serving as a fund manager. He has been responsible for investments and hands-on support in the deep-tech sector, with notable IPOs including QD Laser and Firstesco.

Xavier is the VP of Hibot Americas, in this position he is in charge of leading the expansion of Hibot to the Americas region, commercially, operationally, and building the expansion of strategic partnerships. He also leads internally as a Robotic Integrity SME based on his previous experience in the industry. Bringing his knowledge in, NDT robotic integration, commercialization, operational excellence, and a team leadership builder.
He was previously the North America Program Manager for the global consortium SPRINT Robotics. His contribution to the industry led 20 major O&G companies, along with 110 manufacturers, service companies and software enterprise organizations to build and accelerate robotic technology adoption.
Xavier has built, led, and grown robotic technology organizations in a complex environment and delivering high-impact enterprise solutions to critical infrastructures. A high-integrity leader and technology executive athlete with a passion for helping operation leaders embrace digital transformation to improve performance and safety.

Appointed as an External Board Member of hibot Corp. in 2024.
Founded Creative Hope Co., Ltd. in 2002 and has since developed IT consulting services with a strong focus on strategic aspects. As a consultant, has led numerous successful projects with both domestic and international companies and organizations.
Started activities as “Drone Furafura®” in 2014. On March 26, 2016, awarded the Runner-up Grand Prix in the Drone Movie Contest 2016. In May 2017, joined the DRONE FUND Advisory Board.
From March to August 2018, served as the general supervisor of the TV program Drone Zekkei Kikou broadcasted by Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation.
Since September 2018, has been serving as Co-CEO (Co-Founder and General Partner) of DRONE FUND. Currently also serves as Professor of Digital Marketing at Business Breakthrough University.