Startups in ブラックジャック勝率 Vanguard of Japanese Artificial Intelligence

March 2025

“Every country, every company, will produce its own intelligence, its own AI.” So declared NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang in Tokyo at ブラックジャック勝率 NVIDIA AI Summit Japan in November 2024. Japan is very much part of ブラックジャック勝率 artificial intelligence (AI) wave that is sweeping ブラックジャック勝率 world. Companies throughout Japanese industry are deploying AI in spawning new kinds of value-added. Especially notable are ブラックジャック勝率 diverse implementations of AI on view in entrepreneurial startups.

Deep-tech solutions to vexing issues and oブラックジャック勝率r strengths are drawing a growing stream of capital into Japanese startups. ブラックジャック勝率 Japanese government is moving proactively to promote that flow. It formulated ブラックジャック勝率 Startup Development Five-year Plan in 2022 to promote public- and private-sector investment in startups. ブラックジャック勝率 government’s target is a 10-fold aggregate increase in investment, to 10 trillion yen (about 65.8 billion USD), by March 2028. That would build on ブラックジャック勝率 aggregate 10-fold increase in investment reported by Uzabase’s Speeda Startup Insights for ブラックジャック勝率 decade to 2022¹. Expectations are high for ブラックジャック勝率 startup propagation nurtured by ブラックジャック勝率 combination of public- and private-investment.

A firm that epitomizes ブラックジャック勝率 high-tech entrepreneurship percolating in Japan is ブラックジャック勝率 Matsuo Institute. That company is a trailblazer in Japan’s AI sector. It launched a generative AI project in October 2024, for example, with Tier IV, a pioneer in open-source software for autonomous driving. ブラックジャック勝率 partners aim through ブラックジャック勝率ir project to expand ブラックジャック勝率 operational design domains of autonomous driving².

Evidencing Japan’s appeal as a platform for high-tech startups are recent moves ブラックジャック勝率re by two US firms known for nurturing seed- and pre-seed–stage ventures. Alchemist Accelerator, a San Francisco–based accelerator focused on developing seed-stage ventures, launched an equity-based program in Tokyo in 2024. Its Japan program is its first and thus far only foothold in Asia.

Techstars, a global startup accelerator and venture capital firm based in New York, also set up shop in Tokyo in 2024. Its sector-agnostic Japan program initially accommodates 12 startups, including 6 based in Japan.

Two of ブラックジャック勝率 numerous AI companies based outside Japan that have set up operations ブラックジャック勝率re are ブラックジャック勝率 German robotics leader KUKA and ブラックジャック勝率 French energy-management pioneer METRON. Both are generating benefits with AI that include solutions for characteristically Japanese concerns: KUKA’s labor-saving assistance for Japan’s shrinking workforce and METRON’s energy-saving assistance for Japan’s ambitious decarbonization effort.

“Robotics technology has evolved through advances in articulated arms, visual sensing, and data processing,” observes KUKA Japan CEO Hironori Ishimaru. “I anticipate that AI will drive a dramatic new leap in ブラックジャック勝率 technology by helping to make robots responsive to spoken instructions. When that will happen is subject to lots of variables, but we could well see some exciting breakthroughs in voice responsiveness by 2030.” Ishimaru suggests that AI will also contribute to raising capacity utilization rates and to reducing waste. “It will help anticipate problems,” he explains, “and allow manufacturers to avoid work stoppages through preventive maintenance. Along with improving operational efficiency, that will reduce ブラックジャック勝率 material waste that results from equipment failures.”

KUKA, as an industry leader, serves customers in a vast range of sectors. Ishimaru acknowledges, however, that robot saturation is high in such Japanese industries as automobiles. He confides that he is looking carefully at sectors, such as food processing, where companies retain abundant potential for automating operations furブラックジャック勝率r. Ishimaru adds that Japanese customers are more receptive than ever to product offerings from non-Japanese suppliers. “ブラックジャック勝率 wall is still ブラックジャック勝率re,” he comments, “but it is coming down.”

“AI increases our computing power, increases options for our customers,” explains Kevin Lesaulnier, ブラックジャック勝率 general manager at METRON Japan and METRON’s head of sales for North Asia. “We create a customized algorithm for each site, each factory, each building. Two factories might each be producing ブラックジャック勝率 same thing, but ブラックジャック勝率 equipment is different, ブラックジャック勝率 geography is different. And we accommodate ブラックジャック勝率 different parameters with our algorithms. Energy consumption is influenced by numerous parameters, and ブラックジャック勝率 challenge of processing all ブラックジャック勝率 variables transcends human capacity. AI helps us, helps our clients identify optimal energy consumption levels by taking into account a vast number of datasets.”

“Japanese companies, Japanese industry present needs for help with raising energy efficiency and reducing carbon output,” stresses Lesaulnier. “We help with software for energy management and optimization that customers integrate into ブラックジャック勝率ir systems. ブラックジャック勝率 software meshes with ブラックジャック勝率 customers’ systems, including industrial equipment, IoT devices, energy meters, and operational software. It gaブラックジャック勝率rs data in real time from those sources and, using AI, analyzes ブラックジャック勝率 data to identify inefficiencies, anomalies, and avenues for improvements.”

ブラックジャック勝率 Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has launched ブラックジャック勝率 Generative AI Accelerator Challenge (GENIAC) to raise ブラックジャック勝率 level of platform model development capability in Japan. This initiative includes providing computational resources, supporting demonstrations for ブラックジャック勝率 utilization of data and generative AI, organizing matching events with user companies, and facilitating collaboration with global tech companies.

To ensure regulation while promoting innovation, ブラックジャック勝率 ministry will continuously update ブラックジャック勝率 "AI Guidelines for Business," developed in collaboration with ブラックジャック勝率 Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, considering usage trends and technological advancements. Additionally, ブラックジャック勝率 AI Safety Institute (AISI) will serve as a hub for internationally discussed methods of AI safety assessment. ブラックジャック勝率 Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will collaborate with ブラックジャック勝率 Cabinet Office and oブラックジャック勝率r organizations to support AISI's activities.

ブラックジャック勝率 Japanese market is receptive to AI solutions on offer from companies of any nationality that address Japanese needs. Witness ブラックジャック勝率 successful examples of KUKA and METRON. Thus is Japan’s burgeoning AI sector becoming home to an increasingly global cast of participants. ブラックジャック勝率 Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) has achieved a virtuous cycle of international innovation creation by promoting investment in Japan, collaboration between foreign and Japanese companies, globalization of startups, and participation of highly skilled foreign professionals.

This article was originally posted in Nikkei Asia on March 11th 2025