The foundation was built using the grants from Matsuoka’s MacArthur award, and has helped several clients over the years. When she opted to pursue graduate studies, Matsuoka said she did so because she “felt less educated by what (was) out there in the world.” While studying at MIT, she discovered her passion for combining neuroscience with robotics to improve people’s lives, eventually translating that interest into a non-profit foundation called YokyWorks. “This award allowed me to come out of my shell a little bit and say, maybe if I say some things, people might learn something that’s useful.” “When I was going through Berkeley, often I was the only female in the room, to the point where I would go home and look in the mirror and go, ‘Oh, I’m a girl!’” Matsuoka said. Fast forward a few years to 2007, when Matsuoka became a MacArthur Fellow - colloquially dubbed the “Genius Award” - for developing prosthetic devices and rehabilitation strategies for people who suffered brain injuries. She began her talk by recounting her “unconventional” route to Berkeley, which was initially intended to help her become a professional tennis player.Īfter an injury put her tennis career on hold, Matsuoka dove full-force into studying EECS, intending to build a tennis-playing robot. Matsuoka stopped by the Sutardja Center’s Newton Lecture Series on January 29 to chat with Tsu-Jae King Liu, dean of UC Berkeley’s College of Engineering. She’s also the vice president of Google Health and holds more than 250 patents. Yoky Matsuoka is many things - a former aspiring professional tennis player, mother of four kids, and EECS extraordinaire. Dean Tsu-Jae King Liu (left) interviews Google Health VP Yoky Matsuoka (right) at the Newton Lecture Series on January 29.
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