Nishi attended Waseda University but dropped out to help found the first Japanese computer magazine, I/O.
He knew Microsoft BASIC was becoming the industry standard in North America, and conceived selling it to Japanese companies.
MSX, a new personal computer format, was jointly developed by Microsoft and ASCII Corporation for the Japanese market.
But Nishi and Gates fell out,[4] the partnership was dissolved in 1986, and Microsoft set up its own Japanese software subsidiary.
[1] Under Nishi's direction, ASCII Corporation invested heavily in American startups in the electronics industry.