A 32-Year-Old Worth $950 Million Uses AI to Broker Japan Mergers

Shunsaku Sagami saw firsthand the growing succession problem among entrepreneurs in Japan, which is grappling with the world’s oldest population.

The 32-year-old’s solution: using a proprietary database and artificial intelligence to broker deals for small- and medium-sized companies — largely those founded by clients now on the brink of retirement.

Shunsaku Sagami

Source: M&A Research Institute

His M&A Research Institute Holdings Inc. has surged sevenfold since listing in Tokyo last June, boosting Sagami’s fortune to about $950 million, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

As Sagami tells it, he owes the idea to his grandfather, who dedicated his life to running a small real ...