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July 16, 2024
 

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STARTUPS

Several support networks have launched to help startup founders in Japan whose native language isn't Japanese.
BUSINESS / Companies / Longform
Jul 8, 2024
As Japan's startup ecosystem grows, so does a supportive community of entrepreneurs
Interest in startups is outpacing ecosystem capabilities, which has led more founders to turn to each other for guidance and support.
A Maruti Suzuki India showroom in Chennai, India
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 5, 2024
Suzuki starts $40 million India fund to help rural startups
Suzuki is at risk of losing customers in India due to its paltry lineup of hybrid cars and lack of any electrified options.
Inside the TikTok office in Singapore in 2023
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 1, 2024
China’s AI startups head to Singapore in a bid for global growth
Singapore offers many Chinese artificial intelligence startup companies better access to global investors and customers than China does.
Health minister Keizo Takemi speaks to reporters in Tokyo in March.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 27, 2024
Panel sets out investment vision for Japan's health care startups
Since 2019, the number of health care startups established each year in Japan has declined to around 50.
Sakana AI, prospected to become the fastest-ever Japanese company to achieve unicorn status, aims to create energy-efficient AI models that tackle long-term national-level issues.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 24, 2024
What a Japanese AI unicorn can teach Silicon Valley
Sakana AI, prospected to become the fastest-ever Japanese company to achieve unicorn status, is taking a long-term approach to the development of AI for good.
Amid AI chip juggernaut Nvidia's staggering successes, startups seeking the attention of Silicon Valley venture capitalists are being asked to innovate — but without a clear indication of where the next chapter of AI will be written.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Jun 23, 2024
Beyond Nvidia: the search for AI's next breakthrough
Startups are being asked to innovate — but without a clear indication of where the next chapter of AI will be written.
Film director Hirokazu Kore-eda (left) and actor Lily Franky arrive for a photocall to promote the Official Selection feature film "Shoplifters" at the San Sebastian Film Festival in Spain in September 2018.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 21, 2024
Japanese film startup aims to change industry working conditions
K2 Pictures is seeking to raise the money from domestic and foreign investors.
Tokyo has proved to be an attractive destination for Chinese entrepreneurs in recent times, away from the challenges hitting the economy at home.
BUSINESS
Jun 16, 2024
Chinese entrepreneurs bet on Japan
A Chinese-language MBA program has been catering to those seeking opportunities in Tokyo.
Tomohiro Fukuzawa, CEO of SkyDrive, shows a model of the firm's flying car during a news conference in February 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 16, 2024
SkyDrive gives up commercial use of flying car at Osaka Expo
Three other Japanese companies — made by Japan Airlines, ANA Holdings and Marubeni — will also operate flying cars at the event.
Employees of a seafood restaurant work in their kitchen space at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo. Side gigs are becoming increasingly common in Japan as companies look for flexible sources of labor while workers look to top up income in their spare time.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024
Japan spot work startup Timee targets July listing, sources say
The startup, founded in 2017, is aiming for a valuation of roughly $1 billion and the joint global coordinators are Daiwa Securities and Morgan Stanley, the people said.
Rice is responsible for about 10% of global methane emissions, due to the way it’s grown.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
May 9, 2024
Rice has a methane problem that a startup is promising to fix
Rice is responsible for about 10% of global methane emissions, due to the way it’s grown.
SoftBank Group is in talks to acquire Graphcore, a struggling British semiconductor startup.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 9, 2024
SoftBank said to be in talks to buy troubled AI chip firm Graphcore
Graphcore reported just $2.7 million in revenue for 2022, a 46% drop from the prior year, according to its latest financial report.
Only about 2% of Japan's annual output of 700,000 manga volumes are released in English, according to a startup working to translate manga using artificial intelligence.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 8, 2024
Japanese startup to use AI to translate manga
With its technology, Orange aims to produce 500 English-language manga per month.
Peaches grown in Fukushima Prefecture. A so-called zebra firm in the prefecture is selling substandard fruits to greengrocers in urban areas, which leads to higher incomes for local farmers.
JAPAN
Apr 30, 2024
Japan eyes socially mindful startups to boost regional economies
Starting in June, the government will launch pilot projects to help such startups cooperate with local governments, banks and companies.
A robotics company’s research and development center in Shenzhen. Chinese firms struggle to attract the private equity and venture capital funds that U.S. companies enjoy.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 22, 2024
China needs a better innovation ecosystem
Chinese firms struggle to attract the private equity and venture capital funds that U.S. companies enjoy, putting a damper on their ability to innovate.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida addresses a meeting on AI strategy held at the Prime Minister's Office in December. Japan is beginning to draw global attention for its potential as an AI market.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 12, 2024
Google alums go big in Japan with months-old startup Sakana AI
Sakana is setting out to train low-cost generative AI models using small datasets, unveiling three AI models for Japanese speakers last month.
The New York Stock Exchange in New York. Japanese startups have been turning to the United States where institutional investors are more willing to bet on innovative technologies.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 10, 2024
New York Stock Exchange trying to get Japanese companies to list in the U.S.
South Korean, Indonesian and Singaporean companies from across various sectors are also looking to list in the U.S..
A prototype of the Astroscale Holdings ELSA-d in-orbit debris capture and removal craft is displayed at the company's office in Tokyo in December 2018.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 5, 2024
Japan space startup Astroscale aims for June listing, sources say
The 11-year-old company spoke to overseas institutional investors in March to gather feedback before making a decision on a listing.
Startup Genome officials speak to representatives from startups that will participate in the Global Hypergrowth Tokyo program during its kickoff event last week in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 3, 2024
New mentoring program aims to help later-stage Japan startups go overseas
While many acceleration programs target young startups, the new initiative focuses on later-stage firms that already have a certain degree of experience.
Japan will provide ¥590 billion in additional subsidies to chip venture Rapidus.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2024
Japan approves extra ¥590 billion in aid to chip startup Rapidus
The additional funding will help Rapidus buy chipmaking equipment and also develop advanced back-end chipmaking processes.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
China and Russia conduct joint Pacific military patrol
The Russian corvette Gromkiy enters the Chinese port of Zhanjiang as part of a joint China-Russia naval exercise on Saturday.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.
How to tweak your diet when temperatures spike
Most people think of hydration as a strictly liquid-based concept, but eating foods with high water content is an essential part of making it through a Japanese summer unscathed.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals
Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals

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