Daisuke Okanohara

Daisuke Okanohara is the CEO of Preferred Networks (PFN) which he co-founded in March 2014 to advance AI toward practical use across various industries. Before being appointed CEO in November 2025, he led PFN’s research and business efforts for its core technologies, including generative AI, PLaMo™ large language model, and Matlantis™ universal atomistic simulator as the company’s Chief Technology Officer. Okanohara also serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Matlantis Corporation, a PFN subsidiary that markets the Matlantis™ universal atomistic simulator for materials discovery.

Okanohara co-founded PFN’s predecessor Preferred Infrastructure with current PFN Chairman Toru Nishikawa and others when he was a graduate student in 2006. He received a Ph.D degree in Computer Science from the University of Tokyo in 2010. He has authored and co-authored several books in Japan on AI, deep learning, diffusion models and foundation models.