2025 Person of the Year: Ambassador William E. Grayson
On October 10, the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ) recognized Ambassador William E. Grayson as the 2025 ACCJ Person of the Year. He was selected for his leadership in advancing the US–Japan partnership as commissioner general of the USA Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
The ACCJ honors the USA Pavilion commissioner general for his support of Expo 2025 and bilateral relations.
Interview by Masami Ito • Photos by Yuichi Terada/Cloud9Field
On October 10, the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ) recognized Ambassador William E. Grayson as the 2025 ACCJ Person of the Year. He was selected for his leadership in advancing the US–Japan partnership as commissioner general of the USA Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
ACCJ President Victor Osumi and Executive Director Laura Younger were joined by Vice Presidents Sarah Bader and Jiro Kawakami as well as Governors Julian Bashore, Yumiko Ohta, Frank Packard, Megumi Takayama, and Simone Thomsen plus Treasurer John Kawase to present the award at the USA Pavilion just before the official close of the expo, which ended its six-month run on October 13.
Reaching that finish line, Grayson told The ACCJ Journal, gave him and his team a chance to look back at everything they had accomplished. “I think we’ve all been so deep into it—15 hours, 16 hours every single day—without thinking often about the broader impact.”
That wider influence can certainly be seen in the many interactions between the United States and Japan through the USA Pavilion and the extensive exposure the expo gave US business, innovation, and culture.
Imagine the Infinite
Grayson oversaw the pavilion’s theme—Imagine What We Can Create Together—which focused on innovation, exploration, and the future of human potential. This included:
- Space exploration
- NASA’s Artemis moon program
- US–Japan scientific collaboration
- Next-generation technologies
- Human ingenuity in engineering, medicine, and sustainability
The ACCJ contributed to this with its Osaka to Orbit event, held in the USA Pavilion on August 19. The panel discussion, which highlighted Japan’s contributions to advancing the space industry, featured Osamu Aoki, president and chief executive officer of Aoki Co., Ltd.; Nobu Okada, founder and chief executive officer of Astroscale Holdings; Koichi Yonemoto, cofounder and chief technology officer of Space Walker Inc.; and Dr. Koichi Wakata, chief technology officer at Axiom Space and Japan’s most experienced astronaut.
One item on display at the USA Pavilion was a moon rock brought back to Earth by the astronauts of Apollo 17. Grayson mentioned how former Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba remembers seeing another moon rock retrieved by Apollo 12 astronauts at the 1970 Osaka expo, and also that astronauts visiting this year’s exhibition shared that the same experience led to their love of space and desire to take to the stars. “Grandparents bringing their grandkids through to see what they saw back in 1970, it has a very powerful impact, a lasting effect,” the ambassador said.
Shifting Gears
The USA Pavilion welcomed nearly 2 million visitors, and more than 29 million explored the exhibits of 160 nations. The final count made Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai the second-highest-attended world expo in the past 25 years, trailing only Shanghai in 2010.
But such a resounding success was far from certain before the gates opened.
“The press was terrible,” recalls Grayson of the situation he found when he arrived. “The expo was going to fail, they said. These buildings were going to sink into Yumeshima Island. Nobody was going to show up. The thought among the government and even the expo leaders was that this thing is going to fail.”
Public excitement was also low. A nationwide survey conducted by the Mainichi Shimbun just six weeks before the grand opening found that two-thirds of respondents had no plans to attend the expo.
Grayson, appointed commissioner general in April, was determined to change the narrative. Bringing his strong background in business, finance, law, and public policy to the task of serving as the senior US government representative to the Government of Japan for the expo, he played an important role in guiding the USA Pavilion to success as one of the expo’s most popular destinations, delivering fascinating exhibits that piqued interest among those unsure about visiting.
Strengthening Relations
Beyond that, noted Osumi at the award presentation, he and his team strengthened the long-standing legacy of collaboration and deepened ties between the United States and Japan.
His role as commissioner general included hosting a presidential delegation from Washington on July 19 that included Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Ambassador to Japan George Glass. Three days later, it was announced that the United States and Japan had reached a new bilateral trade agreement. Seeing the expansive opportunities and warm relations during this visit, Grayson suggested, may have helped push things over the finish line.
If the visit did play a role, it’s the sort of impact Grayson sees as a strength of the world expo concept. “A lot of it is just convening great people who come together at every possible level,” he explained. “We really provide the genesis and the spark of opportunity for people to make things happen. Culturally, business-wise, diplomatically, on every level. And there’s no place in the world where you can bring 160 nations together this closely, with this much interaction, and not have great things come from it.”
Grayson thanks his whole team, including Tom Hwei, the deputy commissioner general who arrived in Osaka before him, for their hard work month after month and without breaks. “We’ve been through something together that is so significant, so important, showcasing the United States of America in the best possible light on the grandest diplomatic stage in the world.”
An Honor to Serve
Accepting the ACCJ Person of the Year award as the expo ended, Grayson was to return to San Francisco and his wealth management planning practice. But he looked back fondly on the previous 184 days that had flown by at warp speed, saying he expected to spend a lot more time in Japan in the future.
“It’s bittersweet because all of us have loved it, and it’s sad because it’s coming to an end,” he said. “I think [the expo has] done a remarkable job of further strengthening relations. We saw a very strong bond between Japan and the United States, but I think it’s exceeded all expectations in terms of how good it would be. We’ve had so many representatives from the US government, Congress, various departments and agencies, and businesses come here from the US to help support it, because they were excited to see it. So I think it’s been, as I like to say, an Ohtani grand slam for both countries.”