Jovan David Rebolledo Mendez

Curriculum Vitae

Jovan David Rebolledo Mendez, PhD — AI scientist · neuroscientist · exponential-technology entrepreneur

Okinawa, Japan linkedin.com/in/jovandavid Contact
Download PDF Get in touch

AI scientist, multi-startup founder, and exponential-technology strategist with twenty-five years of international experience across artificial intelligence, neuroscience, robotics, and computational biology. I bridge frontier AI research with real-world deployment, and currently develop computational models of the brain for neurodegenerative disease while advising organizations on AI strategy, governance, and responsible AI.

Current Research

2024 – Present

Computational Models of Parkinson's Disease

Neural Computation Unit, OIST
Okinawa, Japan
  • Developing enhanced network-diffusion models (eNDM) of α-synuclein propagation in the brain, integrating Allen Brain Atlas gene expression with graph-based machine learning across hundreds of brain regions.
  • Modeling disease spread in marmoset and human connectomes toward earlier detection and intervention strategies for Parkinson's disease.
  • Bridging neuroscience, reinforcement learning, multimodal models, and neuro-sensing to build biologically grounded, interpretable AI for medicine.
Exploratory

Selected Exploratory Directions

Independent & collaborative lines, OIST
Okinawa, Japan
  • Physical reservoir computing in unconventional materials — exploring the computational potential of nonlinear physical substrates.
  • 3D mechanical digital twin of the mouse — biomechanical and locomotor simulation for behavioral and pharmacological modeling, in collaboration with experimental neuroscience groups.
  • VoxelFold — an AlphaFold-inspired, voxel-based approach to modeling and reconstructing brain structure across species, enriched with molecular and connectivity features.
  • Manifold-based modeling — principled, regularization-grounded methods for representing and intervening on neural and dynamical state spaces.
  • Cross-species translational modeling — testing whether brain models transfer from non-human primates to human clinical data.
  • Cross-disciplinary method transfer — adapting techniques from astronomy and the physical sciences to neuroscience data problems.

Experience

2024 – Present
· 2015 – 2017

Staff Scientist

Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST)
Okinawa, Japan
  • AI models of Parkinson's disease using brain connectomics and graph-based machine learning (current).
  • Earlier tenure: built metagenomics pipelines and remote bio-sensor integration platforms for in-situ data collection.
2016 – Present

Director

Exponential Japan
Japan
  • Trained executives at SONY and other corporations (including the CEO of SONY Pictures) in exponential innovation and AI strategy.
  • Led Japan's Singularity University Global Impact Competition; ran national AI competitions and XPRIZE outreach.
  • Built and advised multiple startups; international keynote speaker.
2022 – 2025

Co-Founder

SkySpec — hyperspectral AI for infrastructure & environment
Japan / Australia
  • Drove hyperspectral technology for power-infrastructure intelligence, fire detection, oil-spill and ship-behavior analysis using proprietary AI/ML.
  • Co-led the team's XPRIZE Wildfire participation, reaching semi-finalist status; directed participation in the UniSA Space Accelerator (Adelaide).
2023 – 2024

Adjunct Senior Industry Fellow

University of South Australia
Adelaide, Australia
  • AI for the space industry; thesis supervision and workshops (remote).
2022 – 2023

Senior Advisor, Emerging Technologies (Consulting)

United Nations (OICT / ETL)
New York, USA
  • Strategic foresight and digital-transformation advisory; designed specialized seminars on Web3 and quantum computing.
2017 – 2022

Chair for Frontier in AI Education & Researcher

The University of Tokyo — Mechano-Informatics, School of Information Science (AI Center / FAIRE)
Tokyo, Japan
  • Built deep-learning pipelines for neuromorphic sensors and hyperspectral imaging (Fujitsu organic-certification project).
  • Taught 1,000+ students from undergraduate to PhD; founded the first AI competition at the University of Tokyo and in Japan.
  • Filed patents and published peer-reviewed research at the intersection of sensors, AI, and quantum information.
2014 – 2017

Faculty, AI & Robotics (Teaching Fellow)

Singularity University
NASA Ames / Silicon Valley, USA
  • Designed and led AI, deep-learning, and robotics courses (including IBM Watson) for top global talent.
  • Helped design and develop the core AI technologies behind 50+ startups; collaborated with astronauts Dan Barry and Yvonne Cagle at NASA Ames.
2010 – 2013

Postdoctoral Associate, Brain Sciences & Bioinformatics

University of Louisville
Kentucky, USA
  • Computational methods for animal genome mapping; identified miR–mRNA relationships, yielding international publications.

Selected Ventures & Advisory Roles

Smartstorify — Chief Science Officer, Co-Founder · AI-driven data compliance & security (2024–2025)

AffectSense — Co-Founder, Advisory · emotion-AI IP & strategy, Mexico/USA

ExO Works — Certified ExO Consultant · exponential-organization transformation

Tactile Analogics LLC — Chief Technical Advisor · human–machine "wixel" interfaces (Vogt Award, 2013)

Rebotechnologies — Co-Founder, Director · R&D & deployment of exponential technologies, USA/Mexico

Ryukyu Mirai & Startup Lab Lagoon — Co-Founder / Founding Team · innovation & coworking ecosystem, Okinawa

Lerelen — Co-Founder, Director · adaptive early-childhood learning platform; Global Learning XPRIZE entrant

EDroneS Inc · Rightz — Co-Founder / Director · drone systems; venture direction, Mexico

Education

2009
Ph.D. (Doctor of Engineering) — Computer Science & Engineering
Kanazawa University, Japan
Novel ML methods for knowledge extraction from biological data.
2006
M.Sc. — Computer Science & Engineering (AI / Machine Learning)
Kanazawa University, Japan
Adaptive systems & brain–computer interfaces.
2009
Global Startup Program — Exponential Technologies & AI Innovation
Singularity University, NASA Ames / Silicon Valley, USA
2012
MBA coursework — Entrepreneurship & AI Commercialization
University of Louisville, USA
1998
B.E. — Management of Information Systems
University of Veracruz, Mexico

Patents

Tactile representation of detailed visual and other sensory information by a perception interface apparatus. U.S. Patent 10,175,756 — granted Jan 8, 2019. Inventor: Jovan David Rebolledo-Mendez.

System for monitoring, processing, analysis and storage of physiological signs for the recognition of emotions. U.S. Patent Application 2020/0388387.

Environmental surveillance for chemicals and substances on air, land, and water based on multimodal and multidimensional data. U.S. Provisional 63/484,741 (pending).

Power-grid macro energy saturation characterization. U.S. Provisional 63/484,744 (pending).

Selected Publications

Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D., et al. General Framework for Fast Implementation of Conversational AI as Tech-for-Good in Law. IEEE Big Data, Osaka, 2022.

Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D., et al. Legal Artificial Assistance Agent to Assist Refugees. IEEE Big Data, Osaka, 2022.

Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D. & Vaishnav, R. Artificial Intelligence in Precision Oncology: The Way Forward. Int. J. Molecular & Immuno Oncology, 2022.

Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D., et al. Comparison of Equine Reference Sequence with the Source Data Used to Derive It. PLoS ONE, 2015.

Schneider, J., Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D., McNamara, S. A Grayscale Pneumatic Micro-Valve for a Reconfigurable Tactile Tablet for Vision-Impaired Individuals. J. Micromechanics & Microengineering, 2014.

Yampolskiy, R.V., Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D., Hindi, M.M. Password-Protected Visual Cryptography via Cellular Automata. Springer Transactions on Data Hiding & Multimedia Security, 2013.

Rebolledo-Mendez, J.D., et al. Cross-Kingdom Sequence Similarities Between Human microRNAs and Plant Viruses. Communicative & Integrative Biology, 2013.

Full publication list (peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, conference proceedings, and 40+ keynote talks) available here or in the downloadable PDF.

Selected Recognition

XPRIZE Wildfire — semi-finalist (SkySpec) · 2025

Global Learning XPRIZE — competitor (Lerelen) · 2012

Featured interview, Nikkei xTECH · 2019

ERASMUS+ Grant, Sorbonne / Pierre & Marie Curie Institute · 2019

NSF SBIR Phase I Award (AI innovation) · 2017

Featured in "We Are TOMODACHI," Japanese Government Cabinet · 2016

National Researcher Candidate, CONACyT, Mexico · 2014–2018

Google Full Scholarship · 2009

MEXT Japanese Government Scholarship · 2004–2009

First Place, Entrepreneur Contest, Kanazawa University · 2008

Core Expertise

AI Strategy Deep Learning Graph & Generative AI Reinforcement Learning Multimodal Models Computational Neuroscience Brain Connectomics Bioinformatics Neuro-sensing Sensor & Hyperspectral AI Startups & Fundraising IP Creation Exponential Technologies Agentic Systems

Languages

Spanish — native
English — fluent / near-native
Japanese — fluent
French — intermediate