Daisaku YokoyamaView profile
Assistant Professor
Daisaku Yokoyama is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, where he works in Department 3 of the Kitsuregawa-Toyoda Laboratory. His research focuses on parallel and distributed processing, combinatorial search, game tree search, and other search processes. He is also involved in the development of "Gekisashi," a computer shogi (Japanese chess) player. His academic background includes: March 1998: Graduated from the Department of Electronic and Information Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, The University of Tokyo March 2000: Completed Master's course in Information Engineering at the University of Tokyo 2002.3: Graduated from the Doctoral Program in Information Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo September 2006: Obtained a PhD in Science from the Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo Daisaku Yokoyama's research interests primarily center around parallel and distributed computing systems, with a particular focus on combinatorial search algorithms and game tree search techniques. His work bridges theoretical computer science with practical applications, especially in the domain of computer shogi where he has developed "Gekisashi." Beyond game AI, his research has expanded into big data analytics, particularly in transportation systems where he analyzes passenger flows in metro networks and driver behavior using vehicle recorder data. His work demonstrates a consistent thread of applying parallel processing techniques to solve computationally intensive problems across various domains. Yokoyama's publication record shows a clear evolution from foundational work in parallel combinatorial optimization (PopKern library) to more applied research in computer shogi and eventually to big data applications in transportation systems. His early work established frameworks for parallel search algorithms, while more recent publications demonstrate applications of these techniques to real-world problems involving massive datasets from metro systems and vehicle recorders. His research consistently emphasizes the importance of domain-specific knowledge in optimizing parallel algorithms. His notable scientific achievements include: DBSJ Best Paper Award 2014 for "Application and Evaluation of a Bayesian-Based Monte Carlo Tree Search Algorithm to Shogi" Game Programming Workshop Excellent Paper Award (awarded twice) Throughout his career, Yokoyama has been actively involved in academic service, serving on editorial boards, program committees, and as an organizer for numerous conferences and workshops related to programming, parallel computing, and game AI. His work on the Gekisashi shogi engine represents a long-term research project that has evolved from basic search algorithms to sophisticated AI systems, demonstrating both theoretical rigor and practical implementation skills. He is part of the Kitsuregawa-Toyoda Laboratory at the Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, which focuses on advanced computing systems, database technologies, and large-scale data processing. The laboratory provides a collaborative environment for research spanning theoretical computer science to real-world applications in transportation analytics and game AI.

