Company founded: 2011
Founders: Yuichiro Yamazaki (UC Berkeley BA, 2006, Interdisciplinary Studies Field)
My entrepreneurial journey began at UC Berkeley, where I was inspired by the university’s vibrant startup culture and open exchange of ideas across disciplines. While studying there, I collaborated with several classmates to launch a social networking service startup, called Campus Friend, at the dawn of the social media era. The project gained early traction—thanks in part to UC Berkeley’s supportive ecosystem that included entrepreneurship classes at Hass School of Business, classmates who gave us our first servers, and mentors and peers who challenged us to think globally. Although we eventually had to suspend operations due to high server costs and limited venture funding at the time, this experience laid the foundation for my lifelong pursuit of technology and entrepreneurship.
UC Berkeley’s interdisciplinary environment and proximity to Silicon Valley deeply shaped my perspective on innovation and scalability. Courses in economics and computer science, along with seminars led by founders and investors from the Bay Area, helped me understand how technology could transform industries far beyond consumer apps. Motivated to gain a deeper grasp of business fundamentals, I joined an investment bank, Deutsche Bank, after graduation to build expertise in finance, capital markets, and corporate strategy—skills that would later prove crucial in scaling my own startups.
In 2009, driven by both my UC Berkeley roots and my growing passion for artificial intelligence, I founded a data analytics startup, Metaps Inc., focused on automation and machine learning. Over time, the company evolved through multiple strategic pivots—from AdTech to FinTech—mirroring UC Berkeley’s ethos of experimentation and resilience. In 2015, we achieved a major milestone by taking the company public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, transforming what began as a student-driven idea into a listed global startup.
Following the IPO, we expanded to eight global offices across North America, Europe, and Asia. Yet the challenges of the COVID-19 era reminded me of the importance of adaptability and purpose—values I first learned at UC Berkeley. In 2023, seeking greater flexibility for long-term innovation, I led a management buyout to take the company private. Today, I am channeling those lessons into a new startup, Micronity Inc., focused on software-driven business succession, building an ecosystem that helps small and medium-sized companies modernize and thrive in the next generation of AI entrepreneurship.
Published October 2025
