Maki Kaji

was a Japanese businessman who was the president of Nikoli, a puzzle manufacturer. He is widely known as "the father of Sudoku" for his role in popularizing the number game.

Early life Kaji was born in Sapporo on 8 October 1951. His father worked as an engineer at a telecom company; his mother was employed by a kimono shop. Kaji attended Shakujii High School in his hometown. He later studied literature at Keio University, but dropped out during his first year. After a succession of jobs including being a roadie, a waiter and a construction worker, he started a publishing business. together with two friends from his childhood. He shortened it from Suuji wa dokushin ni kagiru ("numbers should be single") at the urging of his fellow workers. and the United States, it became wildly popular. He resigned as head of Nikoli on 31 July 2021, ten days before his death. He was succeeded as president by Nikoli's editor in chief, Yoshinao Anpuku. Nikoli's staff held a memorial gathering for him on 2 November in Tokyo.