Benkyokai

From Chatter to Intelligence: Voice as the Foundation for Human-Centric AI

What if the key to safer, smarter decision-making lies in the voices around us? On October 23 at 6:00 PM (in-person); 6:15 PDT (online) // October 24 at 10:15 AM JST (online), SVJP hosted a thought-provoking Benkyokai featuring Dr. Kinuko Masaki, founder and CEO of VoiceBrain, moderated by Matt Honea, CISO at Hippocratic AI. Dr. Masaki shared how advances in voice analytics are transforming the way we capture, analyze, and act on conversations, driving innovation in public safety communications. Through her insights, we explored how human-centric AI and communication analytics can enhance real-time decision-making and help build more responsive, connected systems.

SPEAKER BIO
Dr. Kinuko Masaki: Founder & CEO at VoiceBrain 
Kinuko Masaki, Ph.D., is a distinguished figure in the fields of voice technology and AI, with a strong academic background. She holds a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Harvard/MIT Health Sciences and Technology and completed post-doctoral work in stem cell engineering at Stanford Medical School. Dr. Masaki has extensive experience in voice analytics and artificial intelligence, and she is the founder and CEO of VoiceBrain, which provides voice-driven situational awareness to public safety organizations.

MODERATOR BIO
Matt Honea: Chief Information Security Officer at Hippocratic AI
Matt Honea is the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at Hippocratic AI, where he leads all security initiatives focused on safe, patient-first applications of generative AI in healthcare. With a career spanning government service, enterprise security, and emerging technologies, Matt’s expertise bridges threat intelligence, incident response, malware analysis, cloud security, and AI safety. Before joining Hippocratic AI, he served in senior leadership roles at Forward Networks, SmartNews, and Guidewire Software, where he shaped corporate product security and cloud strategies. He began his career at the U.S. State Department, gaining a strong foundation in threat analysis and network defense, and holds dual degrees in Electrical Engineering and Slavic Languages and Literatures from the University of California, Santa Barbara.