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Hiroshi Mikitani

Founder & CEO, Rakuten

Search every verified Hiroshi Mikitani interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. In an August 2026 interview with TV Tokyo's WBS program, Rakuten Group Chairman Hiroshi Mikitani discussed the company's mobile business and its integration with AI. He said that customers who join Rakuten Mobile see their customer value increase by roughly three to four times. Mikitani also described plans for an "AI Store Manager" for each shop on Rakuten Market, aiming to enable real-time dialogue between the AI manager and customers during shopping. He noted that AI could help address challenges such as explaining complex products like agricultural goods or local sake, where detailed descriptions and store reliability are important. Mikitani acknowledged past external criticism of the company's mobile investments, but suggested that the investments have proven correct and that there are synergy effects beyond expectations. He also mentioned that Rakuten Mobile subscriptions were approaching 11 million.

Recent appearances

Notable quotes

“Economic-security thinking definitely comes into play, and in such cases countries tend to choose Japanese products if they are comparable.”

“When you move into finance you have to learn what money is, what credit is, and how payments or money transfers work; that knowledge matters when evaluating acquisitions and identifying the key points to focus on.”

“At Rakuten now, finance has grown to account for more than half of the business; I think Rakuten has become one of the most successful fintech companies.”

“We would like to continue to do our best to provide a wireless environment that is not too expensive and is comfortable to as many people as possible.”

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