Japan's startup ecosystem, in English.
Our first piece — a primer for global investors: $3.2B raised in 2025, a deeptech edge, and a TSE rule change making early IPOs harder.
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Tokyo Metropolitan Government will exhibit at Global Startup Expo 2026 in Osaka on Oct 6-7, presenting SusHi Tech Tokyo and Tokyo Innovation Base at its booth. The expo centers on deep tech startups from Japan and abroad.
UTokyo IPC portfolio news: Encarmas has been certified as a startup originating from Institute of Science Tokyo, which the post describes as home to top-level science and engineering expertise.
Kyoto iCAP says researchers do not have to carry everything themselves: research, management talent, capital and networks. At a CCII seminar it discussed startups as an option for university researchers, and support from the research stage.
The Bridge starts a deep tech funding series: Qualips took nine years from founding to approval. Kyoto iCAP also helps find management talent, and bridge loans carry funding through the gap. Nine years is the timeline financing has to fit.
CIC Catalyst APAC and Fukuoka Prefecture have selected two startups for the Fukuoka NEXT Unicorn Spark Program 2026, which supports biotech and medical companies expanding abroad. Participants get a Boston trip and mentoring aimed at the US market.
JETRO is holding an online briefing for the J-StarX Global Bootcamp Series, for people who want to know the program, eligibility and selection process before applying. The post cites Berkeley SkyDeck, a leading university-based accelerator.
Nikkei reports that Japanese space startup Astroscale has won a defense contract from the UK Ministry of Defence, worth over ¥3B (~$20M). Worth noting: the customer here is a foreign defense ministry.