PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Masakatsu Fujie

Also known as 藤江正克, Masakatsu G. Fujie, Masakatsu George Fujie

Masakatsu Fujie is a Japanese roboticist whose research covers walking-support, rehabilitation and surgical robots. Trained in mechanical engineering at Waseda University, he was at Hitachi's Mechanical Engineering Research Laboratory from 1971 to 2001, where he worked on a bipedal robot for EXPO '85 and an AI Ambulation Exercise System and led the Medical and Welfare Apparatus Development Project. As a Waseda professor from 2001, he directed the Global Robot Academia program and in 2015 became director of the university's Future Robotics Organization. His honours include the 2008 IROS Harashima Award for Innovative Technologies and election as an IEEE Fellow in 2012 for contributions to medical robotics. He is a professor emeritus in Waseda's Faculty of Science and Engineering.

Born
1945
Badges

Years link to their sources.

Timeline

  1. 1971

    Mechanical engineering at Waseda

    Born in 1945, he studies mechanical engineering at the Graduate School of Science and Engineering at Waseda University in Tokyo and earns a master's degree in engineering in 1971.

  2. 1971–1995

    Researcher at Hitachi

    He joins the Mechanical Engineering Research Laboratory at Hitachi as a researcher in 1971 and becomes a senior researcher there in 1984. From 1983 to 1985, he works on a bipedal robot for EXPO '85 in Tsukuba, and from 1985 to 1987 on a manipulator for a space project.

  3. 1992–2001

    Medical and welfare robotics

    From 1992 to 1995, he works on an AI Ambulation Exercise System for the Health and Welfare Ministry. He leads Hitachi's Medical and Welfare Apparatus Development Project from 1995, earns a PhD in engineering from Waseda in 1999, and directs the Medical and Welfare Apparatus Development Research Laboratory from 1999 to 2001.

  4. 2001

    Professor at Waseda

    He becomes a professor in Waseda University's School of Science and Engineering in 2001. His research there covers surgical robots, image-guided surgery, endoscopic surgery, and assistive and rehabilitation robots.

  5. 2008

    A Harashima Award

    In 2008, he receives the IROS Harashima Award for Innovative Technologies for contributions in rehabilitation and medical robotics. Waseda's Global Robot Academia, a MEXT Global COE program that he directs, starts in 2008.

  6. 2012

    IEEE Fellow for medical robotics

    In 2012, IEEE names him a Fellow for contributions to medical robotics, with Waseda University as his affiliation.

  7. 2015–2016

    Directing the Future Robotics Organization

    Waseda opens its Future Robotics Organization in March 2015 with Fujie as director, and he also heads its Institute for Healthcare Robotics. At the organization's first symposium in January 2016, he sets out a target: a robot that copes with being bumped in the crowds at Sensoji Temple in Asakusa and keeps walking with its human companion.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor emeritus at Waseda

    By January 2020, when he lectures on the history of robot research in Japan at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, he is a professor at Beijing Institute of Technology and holds more than 150 patents for medical and welfare engineering. He is a professor emeritus in Waseda University's Faculty of Science and Engineering.

Career

  1. Since 2001Waseda UniversityProfessor, Director
  2. 1971–2001HitachiResearcher, Senior Researcher
  3. Beijing Institute of TechnologyProfessor

Education

  1. 1971Waseda UniversityMaster's degree in engineering

From the biography.

  1. More people shaping AI studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology than at any other institutionIncludes Waseda University. We estimate where the people shaping AI studied and where their careers led. Massachusetts Institute of Technology leads with 467 former students, including 291 recorded doctorates.
  2. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes Waseda University. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  3. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes Beijing Institute of Technology. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and 5+ year employment links, career timing and current workplaces for 187 major-prize and 1,111 best-paper winners.
  4. Google had the most people shaping AI every year from 2014 to 2025Our estimates of which organizations employed the most people shaping AI each year from 1955 to 2025, tracing the shift from university labs to companies.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Masakatsu Fujie yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Masakatsu Fujie - Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  2. Lecture of Masakatsu G. Fujie - School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University me.sjtu.edu.cn. Checked 20 October 2026.
  3. IROS Harashima Award for Innovative Technologies - IEEE Robotics and Automation Society ieee-ras.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  4. 2012 New Fellows - IEEE Japan Council ieee-jp.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  5. The future of robotics technology at the Future Robotics Organization's first symposium - Waseda University waseda.jp. Checked 20 October 2026.
  6. Details of a Researcher - FUJIE, Masakatsu w-rdb.waseda.jp. Checked 20 October 2026.