December 9, 2021 | 2:00-3:10 PM PST

Don’t miss out on key business opportunities in Japan’s flourishing ICT, AI/IoT, Biomedical, Health-Tech industries.

During this webinar, you’ll learn more about current startup ecosystems in Hyogo and Kobe, Japan, how to successfully enter the market, gain resources and support from government institutions and more.

In Japan, where longevity and aging is advancing, the medical and health markets are expanding year after year.

As remote work becomes more commonplace due to COVID-19, Japanese companies are actively promoting digitalization of operations and market development through joint projects and investments with overseas companies and startups.

Municipalities that prioritize foreign investment are putting more effort into inviting overseas startups to Japan and offering a variety of support for these businesses.

In this webinar you will learn about:

·      Hyogo and Kobe’s startup ecosystems in 2021

·      All the benefits and advantages of expanding your business in the Japanese market, especially the Kansai region where Hyogo and Kobe are located.

·      A case study of a successful start-up founder who expanded their business into Hyogo, covering their challenges and the benefits of doing a business in Hyogo.

·      Types of business support available for entering the Japanese market from JETRO, Hyogo Prefecture, City of Kobe and Kobe Biomedical Innovation Cluster, Japan’s most advanced life sciences ecosystem.

·      Global mentorship and accelerator programs

·      Expectation of Japanese venture capitals for investing in the US startups

Date: December 9, 2021 2:00 – 3:10PM PST

Cost: Free of charge

Hosted by: Hyogo-Kobe Investment Support Center, Hyogo Business & Cultural Center, Kobe Trade Information Office

With support from: Washington State Department of Commerce, Consulate-General of Japan in Seattle, JETRO San Francisco

Public relations cooperation: Japan-America Society (the State of Washington, the State of Oregon, Northern California), Japan Business Association of Seattle

Speakers

Masakazu Furukawa
Deputy Director-General
Hyogo-Kobe Investment Support Center,
Hyogo Economic Development Center

Mr.Furukawa has been working at the Hyogo-Kobe Investment Support Center (HKIS) since April 2019, after he retired from the Hyogo Prefectural Government.

He is mainly in charge of the management and assistance for the business coordinators who are working for both domestic and foreign affiliated companies which are seeking to find the suitable place for their business operations in Hyogo from other prefectures in Japan or from overseas; relocation / extension of their factories / laboratories / headquarters / branch office / distribution depot / warehouse, etc.

Junko Kobayashi
Executive Director
Hyogo Business & Cultural Center

Junko Kobayashi has been serving as the Executive Director of the Hyogo Business & Cultural Center since April 2020, a role assigned by the Hyogo Prefectural Government. When she worked in the prefectural government office, she was mainly in charge of international affairs and work for the Hyogo International Association, including involvement with the Hyogo Washington Sister-State 50th & 55th Anniversaries.

Kenju Inada
Director
Kobe Trade Information Office

Until now, Mr. Inada had been working in Kobe for over 25 years and had mainly been involved in the work of public enterprises. At KTIO, he promotes business and supports the advancement of start-up companies in Kobe City through collaborations with private companies via interactive market research and various coordination work, all in cooperation with Kobe City Government and related organizations.

Keiko Kobayashi
Chief Project Coordinator
Foundation for Biomedical Research and Innovation at Kobe
Center for Cluster Development and Coordination
Startup Group Global Expansion & Collaboration

Keiko Kobayashi has been responsible for supporting oversea business expansion & collaboration for member companies in Kobe Biomedical Innovation Cluster (KBIC) since 2018. By making use of her business experience in US, she offers comprehensive support by building network with major bio clusters in various regions around the world and contributes to bridging KBIC member companies to the world. She also focuses to enhance KBIC’s international presence by involving various public relations and other activities.

Joshua Flannery
CEO
Innovation Dojo Japan LLC

Joshua Flannery is the founder and CEO of Innovation Dojo Pty Ltd and it's Japan subsidiary, Innovation Dojo Japan based in Kobe City. He was formally an advisor to and before that inaugural CEO of Rainmaking Innovation Japan, and prior to coming to Japan in 2019, he was the head of the Sydney Startup Hub, the largest startup hub in the southern hemisphere.

He was the founding member of the University of New South Wales startup support initiative, supporting over 700 startups over a 6 year period and in 2005 led the Japan market entry for Australian edtech company StudyLink.

Kiminobu Sugaya
Representative Director, Professor of Medicine
PROGENICYTE JAPAN CO.,LTD.
College of Medicine
University of Central Florida

Dr. Kiminobu Sugaya has been a Professor and Head of Neuroscience in Burnett School of Biomedical Science, College of Medicine, University of Central Florida (UCF) since 2004. He is also the Chair of the Multidisciplinary Neuroscience Alliance of UCF, an Honorary Professor at INDICASAT, Panama, and a visiting professor at Tohoku University.

He moved from Japan to the US as a post-doctoral fellow for Mayo Clinic in 1992 when he was a lecturer at the Science University of Tokyo. He was promoted to an associate consultant in 1994. Then he became an assistant professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1997 and was promoted to an associate professor with tenure in 2002.

He invented iPS cells in 2004, a year before the Japanese group filed their invention, using overexpression of embryonic stem cell gene, Nanog, from adult stem cells. He received the National Honor Plaque of Panama for exceptional contribution to neuroscience based on his study on stem cell therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. His research has been reported Washington Post, BBC, NBC, ABC, and other media worldwide.

Dr. Sugaya co-founded Progenicyte Japan with Neung Suh, a biotech UCF spin-off company in Kobe, in January 2020 to bring his following patented technologies to the market. (1) A pharmaceutical approach to increase endogenous stem cells eliminates stem cell transplantation for neurodegeneration therapies and hair growth. (2) A handheld real-time PCR machine, which does not require isolation of nucleotide from the sample. (3) An exosome delivery of therapeutics to treat glioma and COVID-19.

Frith Maier
CEO
Native English Institute

Raised speaking English, Frith learned Japanese and Russian as a young adult and now uses all three languages in her work. In 2017, she founded NEI to establish a method to acquire English skills in the shortest time possible by combining the latest technology with her own language learning experience.

In 2019, Frith participated in the 500 Startups Kobe Accelerator program sponsored by the city of Kobe, received Seed Round funding through Keiretsu Forum Japan, and in March 2020, opened NEI Japan. NEI is the second successful software company she has built. Prior to that, she pioneered an adventure travel company, guiding treks and alpine climbs throughout Russia and Central Asia with REI.During her high school years, she studied abroad for two years at a high school in Kobe City, where she continues to keep in touch with her host family.

Sho Nakayama
Associate
Bonds Investment Group

Sho Nakayama dropped out of Waseda University and joined dip. He engaged in the development of new business and also worked at investment team. From 2021 he joined Bonds Investment Group which is VC investing in early and middle stage.

Takanari Yamashita
Chief Executive Director
JETRO San Francisco

Mr. Yamashita joined JETRO in November 2019 assigned from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Mr. Yamashita previously served as Chief Director of the Support Team for Residents Affected by Nuclear Incidents in the Cabinet Office, where he was involved in the lifting of evacuation orders for Fukushima and the development of the environment for people to return home.

In his current position, he supports the North American expansion of Japanese startups, supports open innovation by Japanese companies in North America, and supports the business development of Japanese companies by building relationships with state governments and counties on the West Coast. In the wake of the outbreak of the new coronavirus, he hosted a series of four webinars in June last year to discuss future innovation activities. Each session was attended by approximately 1,700 people in the headquarters and Silicon Valley offices.

Karin Zaugg Black (Host)
International Business Protocol Liaison
Port of Seattle

Karin Zaugg Black serves as the International Business Protocol Liaison for the Port of Seattle and advises on protocol matters related to international delegations of business leaders, dignitaries, and government officials in order to facilitate positive business relationships.

She supports the Port's various lines of business, including Airport, Seaport (in collaboration with the Northwest Seaport Alliance), Cruise, Fishing, and Economic Development & Tourism. Ms. Zaugg Black currently serves on the Japan-America Society of the State of Washington board as immediate past chair, as vice chair of the City of Seattle’s International Advisory Affairs Board, and as co-chair of Greater Seattle Partners’ Marketing Council. She served as president of the Seattle-Kobe Sister City Association from 1998 to 2015 and continues to serve on the board as past president.