Ichiro Takesako
About Ichiro Takesako
Ichiro Takesako (age 65) has served as an independent director of Know Labs (KNW) since December 2012. He holds a Bachelor of Social Science from Waseda University and has decades of executive experience across sales, overseas business development, corporate strategic planning, and technology operations, primarily at Sumitomo Precision Products and affiliated entities .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sumitomo Precision Products Co., Ltd. (Micro Technology Division) | General Manager, Sales & Marketing | Appointed June 2008 | Led commercial strategy in micro technology |
| Sumitomo Precision Products Co., Ltd. (Micro Technology Division) | General Manager, Overseas Business | Appointed April 2009 | Led M&A for certain Aviza Technology assets |
| SPP Process Technology Systems (Sumitomo subsidiary) | Executive Director | Appointed July 2010 | Executive leadership at 100% owned subsidiary |
| Sumitomo Precision Products | General Manager, Corporate Strategic Planning Group | Appointed August 2011 | Corporate planning leadership |
| M2M Technologies, Inc. (Sumitomo-invested) | Chief Executive Officer | Appointed Jan 2013; continued April 2013 | Technology commercialization leadership |
| Sumitomo Precision Products | General Manager, Business Development | April 2013 (parallel to CEO M2M) | Growth initiatives |
| At Signal, Inc. | Founder | Established March 2017 | Took over M2M operations |
| At Signal, Inc. | Chief Executive Officer | Appointed April 2017 | CEO of successor entity |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure/Status |
|---|---|---|
| At Signal, Inc. | Chief Executive Officer | Since April 2017 |
| M2M Technologies, Inc. | Chief Executive Officer | Since January 2013 (prior to At Signal) |
Board Governance
- Independence: KNW’s Board identifies Takesako as independent under NYSE American rules; in 2024, six of seven directors were independent (including Takesako) .
- Committee memberships:
- 2024: Nominating & Corporate Governance Committee member; committee chaired by Larry K. Ellingson. Oversight includes director selection, governance policies, and approval of related party transactions .
- 2023: Compensation Committee member; Compensation chaired by William A. Owens .
- 2022: Audit Committee member; Audit chaired by Jon Pepper; Owens designated financial expert .
- Attendance: Each director attended at least 75% of board and applicable committee meetings in the last fiscal year; all directors attended the virtual 2023 annual meeting .
- Indemnification: Articles of incorporation provide indemnification to directors/officers; KNW maintains Indemnification Agreements with current directors .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount | Period/Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (non-employee directors) | $12,500 | FY 2023; applies to independent directors including Takesako |
No committee-specific fees or per-meeting fees were disclosed for directors .
Performance Compensation
| Award Type | Grant Date | Shares/Units | Exercise Price | Vesting | Fair Value/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stock Option (director grant) | Feb 15, 2023 | 20,000 | $1.24 | Vested at issuance | Valued at Black-Scholes $0.799 per share; standard board service grant |
| Outstanding Options (as of Sept 30, 2023) | Various | 77,500 | N/A | N/A | Aggregate outstanding options count |
| Outstanding Warrants (as of Sept 30, 2023) | Jan 5, 2022 | 40,000 | $1.70 | Expire Jan 5, 2027 | Director warrants program |
| Director services equity (program) | H1 FY 2024 | 453,492 total shares to six directors | $0.434 | N/A | Aggregate director services issuance; $196,816 total expensed (not broken out per director) |
| Stock Options (program) | H1 FY 2024 | 2,809,817 total options to six directors | $0.46 | Vested at issuance; 5-year term | Aggregate issuance; not broken out per director |
No performance metrics (e.g., revenue, EBITDA, TSR) tied to director equity awards were disclosed; director compensation is primarily stock options/stock grants plus a cash retainer .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- No current public-company directorships for Takesako were disclosed; his appointment references prior position with Sumitomo and its prior significant partnership with KNW (historical relationship) .
Expertise & Qualifications
- Education: Bachelor of Social Science, Waseda University .
- Domain experience: M&A leadership (Aviza Technology assets), micro technology operations, overseas business development, corporate strategic planning, and commercialization (M2M/At Signal) .
- Governance relevance: Service on audit (historically), compensation (historically), and nominating/governance committees indicates broad oversight capability across financial reporting, pay structures, and governance policies .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Jun 30, 2023 | Jun 30, 2024 | Jun 20, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership (shares) | 137,500 | 852,028 | 29,875 |
| Ownership % of outstanding | 0.3% | <1% (asterisked in filing) | Not disclosed in table |
Breakdown (as of Jun 30, 2024):
- Common shares: 155,000
- Options exercisable within 60 days: 657,028
- Warrants exercisable within 60 days: 40,000
Policy alignment:
- Anti-hedging/anti-pledging: Hedging prohibited; margin/pledge capped at 25% of total shares owned by the director .
- Stock ownership guidelines for directors: Not disclosed (no guidelines section present).
Governance Assessment
-
Strengths
- Long tenure with independent status; cross-committee service over time (audit/compensation/nominating & governance) supports board effectiveness and fiduciary breadth .
- Attendance: Met KNW’s minimum expectation (≥75%) and attended 2023 annual meeting, indicating engagement .
- Nominating & governance oversight explicitly covers approval of related-party transactions, adding a check on conflicts .
- Anti-hedging/pledging policy reduces misalignment risk from derivative or collateralized positions .
-
Watch items and RED FLAGS
- Section 16 filing timeliness issues: Takesako filed two late Form 4s in 2023 (transactions due Feb 17 and Mar 27; filed April 10 and April 20). While rectified, late filings are a governance process red flag .
- Director equity grants: 2024 program granted options that vested at issuance and low exercise prices ($0.46), and stock grants for services—these lack disclosed performance conditions, potentially weakening pay-for-performance alignment for directors .
- Historical relationship basis for appointment (Sumitomo prior partnership) may be perceived as a potential conflict vector, though current independence is affirmed .
- Ownership volatility: Reported beneficial ownership fell materially from 852,028 (Jun 30, 2024) to 29,875 (Jun 20, 2025), which may diminish “skin in the game” alignment unless explained by corporate actions and capital changes; investors should seek context in 2025 filings .
No related-party transactions were disclosed involving Takesako beyond standard director compensation; the related-party section highlights transactions with other parties (e.g., Struve, Erickson, Conley) and general director equity issuances .