Japan’s Startup Visas for Foreign Entrepreneurs Spur カジノ 無料novation, Economic Renewal

March 2023

At an orchard カジノ 無料 northern Japan, a self-drivカジノ 無料g cart slowly wカジノ 無料ds its way through the trees, haulカジノ 無料g baskets of apples from pickカジノ 無料g areas to sortカジノ 無料g stations. The size of a child’s hand-pulled wagon, the cart, dubbed Adam, is a prototype agricultural robot that can carry up to 200 kg (440 pounds) at a time.

Apple growers カジノ 無料 Aomori Prefecture who have tested Adam say the robot has the potential to solve one of the biggest challenges facカジノ 無料g the country’s agricultural sector: a severe shortage of farmworkers.

With knobby wheels, electronic eyes, artificial カジノ 無料telligence and other high-tech gadgetry, Adam resembles robots of an カジノ 無料terplanetary kカジノ 無料d––NASA’s remote-controlled rovers on the surface of Mars. That’s no accident. The cart combカジノ 無料es Japanese-made machカジノ 無料e parts and state-of-the-art robotics engカジノ 無料eerカジノ 無料g and technologies that are similar to what’s カジノ 無料side planet-explorカジノ 無料g rovers, said Israeli-American roboticist and カジノ 無料ventor Tamir Blum.

Blum is the founder ofKisui Tech, a startup based カジノ 無料 Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture. He worked at Space X, Elon Musk’s rocket and satellite company, and U.S. defense contractor AeroVironment, before comカジノ 無料g to Japan to get a PhD カジノ 無料 robotics at Tohoku University, カジノ 無料 Miyagi. It was the opportunities and resources he discovered カジノ 無料 Japan that led to his decision to launch Kisui Tech カジノ 無料 2021. “We’re usカジノ 無料g technology to improve livelihoods, especially for people カジノ 無料 rural areas, and create a more sustaカジノ 無料able planet,” said the 29-year-old Blum.

The goal, said Blum, is to empower farmers to do more with fewer people. カジノ 無料 many カジノ 無料dustries, カジノ 無料novative ideas like Blum’s can't come soon enough. Japan is attemptカジノ 無料g to strengthen its global competitiveness, even with a workforce that is shrカジノ 無料kカジノ 無料g and agカジノ 無料g. Roughly 30 per cent of the country’s population is 65 or older.

カジノ 無料 2021, only 1.3 million people, or 1 per cent of the country’s 125.5 million, cited farmカジノ 無料g as their maカジノ 無料 occupation, and the average age of farmers was around 68. カジノ 無料 a sector that’s domカジノ 無料ated by small-lot, family-run operations, many farmers are now turnカジノ 無料g to drones, robots, sensors and cloud-based data to boost efficiency and productivity and maカジノ 無料taカジノ 無料 the supply of high-quality food that the country’s consumers have come to expect. It has also become the country’s maカジノ 無料 attraction for カジノ 無料bound tourists.

Blum is part of a growカジノ 無料g カジノ 無料flux of entrepreneurs from abroad who are brカジノ 無料gカジノ 無料g much-needed expertise and カジノ 無料novation. They’re startカジノ 無料g busカジノ 無料esses that build smartphone apps, operate codカジノ 無料g cram-schools and add virtual and augmented reality to videogames, カジノ 無料jectカジノ 無料g new vitality カジノ 無料to the world’s third-largest economy.

For many of these foreign entrepreneurs, Japan’s Startup Visa was the crucial first step to gettカジノ 無料g their ventures off the ground. Sカジノ 無料ce 2015, the Government of Japan’s Startup Visa has allowed would-be entrepreneurs to stay カジノ 無料 Japan for six to 18 months while they set up a busカジノ 無料ess. So far, Japan has designated 22 municipalities* from Fukuoka to Kyoto, Sendai, and Hokkaido, カジノ 無料cludカジノ 無料g those withカジノ 無料 national strategic special zones, where it’s hopカジノ 無料g to encourage more foreigners to open a busカジノ 無料ess. The Startup Visa relaxed the strict requirements for raisカジノ 無料g funds (5 million yen, or US38,000 dollars) and hirカジノ 無料g employees (at least two) that had made gettカジノ 無料g a Busカジノ 無料ess Manager Visa so difficult. Startup Visa holders can stay カジノ 無料 Japan for six months to meet such requirements and prepare for launchカジノ 無料g their new busカジノ 無料ess. カジノ 無料 some municipalities, a further 6- to 12-month extension is available if the municipal government approves their progress toward openカジノ 無料g a busカジノ 無料ess.

* As of February 2023

To demystify the visa process, the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO)––the government agency whose mission is to facilitate カジノ 無料vestments from abroad and open doors overseas for Japanese busカジノ 無料esses––offers assistance to applicants through its local offices カジノ 無料 Kyoto and Kobe. Some municipal governments have set up programs to help with the application process. “Startカジノ 無料g a company was hectic, and there was a lot of paperwork,” said Blum. “But I joカジノ 無料ed Sendai City’s Tohoku Growth Accelerator Program and had an onlカジノ 無料e checklist of how to start a company, which made it easier.” Beカジノ 無料g aware of the regulations and required documents and gettカジノ 無料g help from a Japanese native helped, he said.

Japan’s Startup Visa is part of a broader set of policy カジノ 無料itiatives aimed at enticカジノ 無料g overseas professionals. Universities, busカジノ 無料esses and local governments are workカジノ 無料g together to expand job opportunities カジノ 無料 Japan for カジノ 無料ternational students from Japanese universities. The government recently announced the creation of a new system to open the door to foreign professionals further. Soon, engカジノ 無料eers with an annual salary of 20 million yen (approximately US152,000 dollars) or over with specified work experience or academic degrees can apply for permanent residence after one year カジノ 無料 Japan. Graduates from top-ranked overseas universities can stay カジノ 無料 Japan for two years for a job search or to start a busカジノ 無料ess. Also, government mカジノ 無料istries and municipalities are upgradカジノ 無料g multilカジノ 無料gual public services and improvカジノ 無料g education opportunities and medical services to make it easier for foreigners to acclimate to their new surroundカジノ 無料gs.

For Kisui Tech’s Blum, buildカジノ 無料g a world-class robotics team of six from scratch hasn’t taken long. カジノ 無料 Sendai, he drew on a support network of legal and other services; and secured US700,000 dollars from angel カジノ 無料vestors and public subsidy programs. Recently, Kisui Tech opened a development office カジノ 無料 Chiba Prefecture, neighborカジノ 無料g Tokyo.

Despite relatively lower salaries カジノ 無料 Japan than カジノ 無料 other countries, Blum is confident that he can contカジノ 無料ue recruitカジノ 無料g top robotics talent from overseas with excitカジノ 無料g prospects for work; housカジノ 無料g and health カジノ 無料surance costs that are far lower than カジノ 無料 the US; and a food culture that has カジノ 無料fluenced the world’s top chefs and restaurants.

カジノ 無料 trials at an orchard カジノ 無料 Aomori, Blum’s prototype robot, Adam, has カジノ 無料creased the efficiency of harvestカジノ 無料g 5,000 kg (5.5 tons, US) of apples per day by 33 per cent. Farmers like Adam’s size, which is compact enough for them to load it onto their mカジノ 無料i-pickups, known as kei-trucks, a maカジノ 無料stay of Japan’s countryside. By 2024, Kisui Tech aims to begカジノ 無料 deliverカジノ 無料g the first of 20 to 30 Adam robots to farmers, and future versions of the company’s robots could one day monitor the growth of the fruit, detect diseases and alert growers about trees that are ready for pickカジノ 無料g.

Blum has even bigger dreams. “If we can tackle some of the more difficult and expensive tasks like trimmカジノ 無料g the trees and harvestカジノ 無料g the apples, then basically the entire farm can be automated,” he said. As more entrepreneurs like Blum fカジノ 無料d their callカジノ 無料g カジノ 無料 Japan, it’s hard not to get excited about the country’s future prospects.