Toshiba America Inc. (TAI) has announced that Koichi Yanabe has been named chairman and chief executive officer, effective Oct. 1, 2026. Yanabe succeeds Kentaro Takagi, who will continue as president of Toshiba International Corp. (TIC).

As chairman and CEO, Yanabe will oversee Toshiba's operations in the United States while leading efforts to expand business development and identify new growth opportunities across the region. A key focus will be strengthening Toshiba's position in the data center market, as well as expanding opportunities across industrial and energy infrastructure. Working across Toshiba's U.S. businesses, Yanabe will also focus on connecting the company's broad portfolio of technologies and expertise to address evolving customer and market needs, while continuing to strengthen governance, compliance and risk management across U.S. operations.

"I'm honored to return to the United States for the third time and take on this new responsibility," Yanabe said. "Houston has become a second hometown for my family. Toshiba has a strong foundation here and a broad range of technologies and expertise across our businesses. I look forward to working with our teams to build on those strengths, deepen our relationships with customers and partners, and create the foundation for new opportunities in data centers, industrial and energy infrastructure, and other areas where Toshiba can deliver value."

Yanabe brings more than three decades of experience with Toshiba, including extensive leadership experience in industrial systems and international business operations. Most recently, he served as corporate officer and vice president of Toshiba Corp.'s Industrial Systems Division, with executive responsibility for the business.

The appointment also marks Yanabe's return to Toshiba's U.S. operations. From 2009 to 2012, he served as strategic planning manager at Toshiba International Corp. He then spent three years as managing director of Toshiba International Corp. Pty Ltd. in Australia before returning to the United States in 2017 as president and CEO of Toshiba International Corp. He served in that role through 2021, overseeing business operations, corporate administration and governance of the U.S. subsidiary. His career has also included senior leadership positions within Toshiba's industrial systems businesses in Japan.

Takagi, who has served concurrently as chairman and CEO of Toshiba America Inc. and president of Toshiba International Corp. (TIC), will continue in his role as president of TIC, where he will focus on leading the company's industrial, power electronics and infrastructure businesses across North America.

In other news, The LA Times Studios has selected Toshiba America Business Solutions Chief Solutions and Marketing Executive Kerstin Woods as a nominee for its Inspirational Women 2026 Leadership Award.  

Woods earns this recognition for exemplifying excellence in her field while driving meaningful impact across California’s business community. The LA Times Studios Inspirational Women 2026 Leadership Awards further recognize and celebrate female business leaders achieving remarkable success within their respective organizations and industries. LA Times Studios will select award winners and finalists on Nov. 5 at Fairmont Miramar Santa Monica in Santa Monica, California.

From Rocket Designer to Marketing Difference Maker

Woods began her career designing rockets for Lockheed Martin in the aerospace industry. Her early passions for engineering and communication continue to serve Woods well as chief solutions and marketing executive at Toshiba, where she helps her company’s business efforts take flight.

Woods is instrumental in shaping Toshiba’s transition from a traditional hardware-focused model to a more dynamic, platform-centric organization. She leads cloud solutions, workflow automation, print management and AI-enabled services initiatives, while building a more integrated and scalable go-to-market engine for direct and partner channels across the Americas.

By successfully directing Toshiba's 2023 LEAD Beyond client and reseller conference, Woods' organization won the Gold Stevie Award for Best Brand Engagement Event. This Gold Stevie is awarded to events that drive customer engagement to a brand, build great customer relationships and have a strong post-event impact.

For her marketing leadership at Toshiba, Woods earned the Stevie Award for Female Executive of the Year. She is also an ENX Magazine Difference Maker, The Cannata Report Woman Influencer and a finalist for the 2026 The Cannata Report Frank Award: Best Female Executive (the honoree will be recognized on Nov. 19). Woods was additionally a finalist for the 2025 LA Times Studios Orange County Executive Leadership Award in the Chief Marketing Officer category.

Woods, moreover, conducts admissions interviews on behalf of Stanford University’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions as a member of the university’s alumni ambassador program. She additionally started Toshiba’s first-ever industry-wide giveback while raising more than $20,000 for Orangewood Foundation, a Southern California nonprofit helping foster youth transition into adulthood.

Woods previously served on the executive committee of the board of directors at Ocean Institute, a Southern California nonprofit that provides firsthand science, technology, engineering and mathematics education to 13,000-plus students a year. This enabled her to share her love of STEM to encourage the next generation of engineers through experience-based education in the most incredible ocean classroom.

"Kerstin is an extraordinary marketing and business leader for Team Toshiba," said Larry White, president and chief executive officer, Toshiba America. "She establishes the direction for our award-winning marketing efforts while delivering quantifiable results. Kerstin is also a formidable champion for worthy charitable organizations here in Southern California."