TSUYOSHI ITO Founder CEO / Managing Partner

Has over 15 years of investment experience and Has raised and manages two funds for startups with committed capital totaling a little under $200M. Invests in various fields such as medical device, robotics, digital health, healthcare services, Agri tech, food and new materials.

Currently, he serves as a visiting associate professor at Nagoya University, and has served as a member of the Startup committee of the Cabinet Office and various ministries and agencies.

Portfolio: CYBERDYNE (IPO), W-Scope (IPO), Morpho (IPO), TKP (IPO), Spiber, astamuse, Microwave Chemical, CureApp, River Field, Lily MedTech, Aillis, POL, IntegriCulture, OPEｘPARK, NOVENINE, Regional fish

YUICHIRO SANO Principal / India Fund

Over 15 years of experience working in emerging markets, including 3 years of residence in India, at Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Experienced a variety of financial instruments including equity investment, corporate finance, and project finance.

Joined Beyond Next Ventures in April 2021. Leads investment operations in India. Passionate about impact investment with a particular focus on health-tech. Graduate from Harvard Kennedy School. Loves Bhindi Masala and Masala Dosa.

KARTHIK RAMPALLI Senior Associate / Investment Gr. (India)

Prior to joining Beyond Next Ventures (BNV), Karthik played a pivotal role in advancing open innovation projects in collaboration with Japanese enterprises at an AI startup and Deloitte.He actively contributed to investments in Japanese CVC funds and startups in India and the US.At BNV, he has transitioned into the role of a capitalist while also supporting our portfolio companies in their global expansion.Karthik is highly passionate about investing in digital transformation and industry 5.0 sectors, including semiconductors and chips, 5G/6G deployments, cybersecurity, and AI. He is also an active member of communities such as Global Shapers (an initiative by the World Economic Forum) and deep-tech startup communities, as well as investor communities (PE, VC/CVC, angels) across the world.

KARTHIK VARADA Senior Associate / Investment Gr. (India)

Karthik is engaged in new investments in Indian startups and support growth and impact visibility of portfolio companies. Prior to joining BNV, he was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Tokyo and researched ESG / climate-tech investments. Karthik was a founding member of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation’s Asia Women Impact Fund, one of the region’s first and largest impact investment funds committed to advancing gender equality. He advised venture capital firms and startups across Asia on investment analysis and social impact assessment. Karthik holds a PhD from the University of Tokyo, focused on ESG investing. He holds a masters degree from the University of Tokyo, where he studied impact investing. He received an undergraduate degree in engineering from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad.

JAY KRISHNAN Partner / Head of India Investment Group (India)

Jay Krishnan is a serial entrepreneur with a background in Hardware platforms, Networking & IoT. He has a diverse background in Venture, entrepreneurship, engineering, product management and strategy. His career saw him traverse 6 cities across India, US & Canada.
He was the CEO of The Accelerator centre, Canada’s top Venture accelerator. Jay was the founding CEO of T- Hub, India’s largest Startup Hub. His venture experience as a partner bridged investments from pre seed to Series A across SRI Capital and Mantra capital. His angel investments range from EdTech to Web3.
Jay’s professional career spanned Brookoutrout- Cantata, Juniper Networks & Cisco systems. He exited DDI & Radifinity Inc. through IP & asset sales. He learnt managing beta from his failed startup than his successful exits. But as an investor, he focuses on generating alpha from every outcome Jay is a published author. His book of short stories Unfinished Business was published in early 2024 He is a curious learner, obsessive reader, and a self- professed nerd.