(born September 13, 1947) is the owner and founder of
Aeon Corporation, one of the "Big Four"
eikaiwa
or are English conversation schools, usually privately operated, in Japan. It is a combination of the word and or .
Although the Japanese public education system mandates that English be taught as part of the curriculum from the fifth grade, ...
(conversational
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Culture, language and peoples
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
* ''English'', an Amish ter ...
) schools in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
.
Founding of Aeon
In 1973, Aki and university classmate
Tsuneo Kusunoki
(born June 14, 1947) is the founder of the now-bankrupt GEOS Corporation, previously one of the major eikaiwa (private school for conversational English) providers in Japan.
GEOS Founding
In 1973, roommates Kiyoshi Aki and Tsuneo Kusunoki foun ...
founded the company AMVIC. The name was an acronym of the phrase "for AMbition and VICtory." The company would focus on foreign language studies.
Later, AMVIC International was split into two divisions. Aki became the head of , which provided foreign language training for students. Kusunoki assumed control of , which specialized in English language education for non-native speakers.
In 1989, AMVIC International split into two separate companies, as the former partners developed differing visions of the company's future. Aki's company became Aeon, focusing on language learning in Japan. He remains Aeon's chairman as of 2010. Kusunoki's company became
GEOS, focusing on global language learning with focus on English language education. GEOS and Aeon remained competitors until April 2010 when GEOS filed for bankruptcy protection.
Personal life
Aki's wife is
Italian-American
Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...
, and his daughter is Angela Aki.
She, herself and AI sidebar: Mixed blessings
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aki, Kiyoshi
1947 births
Living people
English conversation schools in Japan
Japanese businesspeople