Komari Machida

Co-Founder,
UTime App

Komari is committed to building up her credentials in areas which matter most to her, and she assesses her commitments through an multi-perspective approach including i) selecting opportunities which are available, ii) conducting in-depth research and real world application potential, iii) readjusting her approach where necessary based on initial outcomes, and iv) examining her level of interest and passion before continuing to next phase. 

She became interested in psychology after she became depressed at 13 years old and could not get a therapist for a year despite multiple calls for help, worsening her condition and mental state. To create systems change, she started developing an app called UTime. Komari and her team came up with the idea when she decided to participate in Technovation Girls 2022, because she wanted to learn to code. In addition, she was born with 17 allergies, and growing up, she felt excluded from her peers. She underwent desensitization treatment, and she hopes to play a role in reducing inequalities associated with allergies. Her goal is for more youth in the future to understand the issue more, handle the stress associated with it for those who have food allergies, and create a platform for potential solutions.  

In addition, she decided to start a dropshipping business because she had spare time during quarantine and appreciates fashion. Further, she wanted to use the revenues to learn other skills like investing, which aligns with her interest to trace patterns in data and identify areas of impact. 

Looking ahead to high school graduation, she wants to release her mental health app and reach thousands of users, expand her English classes to at least 50 students, and help children and parents struggling with food allergies. She also wants to help make Japanese citizens’ voices heard in regards to politics.

For university, she is interested in four main fields at the moment - psychology, politics, economics (statistical analysis) and computer science. She would like to minor/double major in education as she likes to see the look of inspiration in students’ eyes when they understand or realize something from the things she teaches them.