Zach Tu
CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR
Ex-4A | Based in Tokyo | Bridging Concept, Code & AI

I design experiences where ideas, interfaces, and code do not compete, but become one narrative.
After years in 4A agencies leading creative technology, I moved to Tokyo to build work that feels both globally sharp and quietly Japanese.

From 4A to Tokyo

I spent the last decade-plus in 4A networks as a Creative Technology Director, translating business problems into interactive experiences – from web, installations and retail to data-driven campaigns.

Today I am based in Tokyo, focusing on work that sits between brand, digital product, and AI. I enjoy being early in the room – shaping the brief, not only executing it.

東京を拠点に、海外クライアントと日本企業のあいだに立ちながら、
「コンセプト」「UX/UI」「テクノロジー」「AI活用」を横断してリードできる クリエイティブテクノロジストを目指しています。

EXPERIENCE: 4A / Global Brands / Creative Tech / UX / Prototyping / AI

Leading at the Intersection
4A AGENCY | CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR
From Pitch Rooms to Production Floors

Led cross-disciplinary teams (creative, UX, tech, production) to ship interactive campaigns, installations, and platform work for global clients across finance, automotive, telco and FMCG.

  • Owned ideas from deck to deploy – not just concepting, but delivery.
  • Bridged C-level conversations and developer constraints.
  • Turned “nice case film” ideas into systems that can survive reality.
TOKYO & REMOTE | CONSULTING & PROTOTYPING
Designing with Constraints

Helping brands and teams in Japan rethink their digital presence, often starting from a single landing page or prototype, then growing into product, content, or service design.

  • Hands-on with Figma, front-end and rapid prototyping.
  • Adapting global ideas to local nuance and language.
  • Working in English with Japanese context; conversational JP.
Quietly Loud Projects
INSTALLATION For a global electronics brand
ROLE Interaction Director
A space that reacted to people, not just to touchscreens.

Designed an experience where light, sound, and interfaces responded to visitors’ motion and dwell time. My role covered experience architecture, creative tech direction, and prototyping in close collaboration with architects and hardware vendors.

WEB / PRODUCT For a financial service
ROLE Interaction Director / UX & Product Lead
Turning jargon-heavy flows into a single calm screen.

Led the transformation of a complex onboarding journey into a single responsive interface, aligning legal, compliance, and UX. Balanced data integrity with a branded, human tone.

WEB / PRODUCT For an automotive brand
ROLE Interaction Director
From gimmick to reusable digital asset.

Started as a one-off interactive idea; evolved it into a modular platform that local markets could re-skin. Oversaw technical architecture, creative QA, and rollout playbook.

Working with, not against, AI

01 — Beyond Prompt Decoration

AI is not a magic intern; it is a new type of interface and infrastructure. I design systems where AI is embedded in the workflow, not pasted at the end as a gimmick.

  • Using AI to explore directions, then narrowing with human judgement.
  • Designing flows where humans stay accountable for the final output.

02 — Creative Technology as Glue

My value is in the “glue” – connecting strategy, UX, creative and engineering. In an AI world where production is cheaper, this glue becomes more valuable.

  • Fluent in both decks and dev tools (Figma, VS Code, prototyping).
  • Comfortable saying “no” early to save teams time and budget.

03 — Human Texture in a Synthetic Age

When everything can be generated, the role of a Creative Technology Director is to protect timing, pacing, and detail – the parts AI still struggles to feel.

僕は、「どこまでが機械で、どこからが人の仕事か」をデザインする役割だと 考えています。

Let’s talk quietly, then build loudly.

I am open to roles in creative technology, experience design, innovation, and hybrid leadership – in Tokyo or remote with a Japan focus.

Happy to speak with HR, founders, and recruiters who are looking for someone to bridge creative, tech and AI in a way that is calm, reliable, and long-term.

LOCATION Tokyo, Japan
LANGUAGES English / 日本語(日常会話) / 繁體中文

If you prefer, feel free to write in Japanese.
日本語でのご連絡も大歓迎です。