2017

Japanese whisky is currently undergoing a boom in popularity around the world, with numerous buyers willing to pay high prices when prime examples come up for auction. In 2008, Ichiro Akuto founded a small distillery in…

Taro Nakamura develops robots based on imaginative imitation of living organisms. His expertise is in great demand from numerous firms and government funded research programs thirsty for innovation, and he currently has…

Despite their superior workmanship, recent years have seen Japan's apparel factories losing work to lower-cost ones abroad. Entrepreneur Toshio Yamada has teamed up with those factories to create a new, Japan-based clot…

With high labor costs and little space, Tokyo's local factories are at a disadvantage compared to those abroad. But one metalworking factory in Tokyo has attracted attention from as far away as MIT. Keiichi Hamano has t…

LED grow lights for use in agriculture are currently in the spotlight. Not only do they enable vegetables to be reliably grown all year round, for crops produced in a sterile environment they allow the elimination of ag…

Paper: even in our digital age, demand for this material continues, and at great environmental cost. But one man is gaining attention for using Japanese technology to create a new kind of paper from... stone. The man wh…

In 2013, from earthquake-hit northeastern Japan, Hiroyuki Takahashi launched a new kind of food magazine. Packaged together with local ingredients, the publication offers insights into producers' philosophies alongside …

For social businesses, the need to address social issues while also making a profit means that many young social entrepreneurs falter at the first hurdle. To prevent such good intentions going to waste, Kazunari Taguchi…

Yasukane Matsumoto is the founder of a web-based printing service that has seen revenues increase 50-fold over in just 4 years. Using a network of small printing firms, the service matches each job request to the ideal …

While still a student, Shunji Sugaya started an IT company focused on artificial intelligence and robots for use on the farms of the future. Agriculture in Japan faces serious challenges like an aging population and shr…

There are about 30,000 food-producing companies in Japan. The top 1% are industry giants. The other 99% are small businesses that struggle to compete with the majors on price and get their products sold. Kenta Kurokawa …

Entrepreneur Yasuyuki Toki and his team won the 2017 Startup World Cup for their revolutionary IoT-based service which tracks and records the physical and mental well-being of children in nursery schools, connecting car…

In a small, unassuming factory in Kyoto, one firm is helping save lives. That firm is run by Masatoshi Takeda, who invented a method to build hyper-accurate replicas of the organs of patients, from those with heart defe…

An educational app that's popular with young users. In addition to allowing users to track study hours and study resources, the app also has rich SNS functionality for fostering communication between students. In Japan …

Japan is dotted with buildings and houses with centuries of history, but maintaining them can be economically challenging, and many are in danger of being lost. Enter Jun Tarikino, an entrepreneur who rents these struct…

At some of Japan's most exclusive department stores, colorful African-print bags are gaining a following. The appeal lies in their 4-way versatility: each piece, made from colorful batik fabric, can be used as either a …

Around the world, demand for sustainable wind energy is growing. But for traditional wind turbines, strong winds can result in temporary shutdowns, and sometimes even severe damage. Atsushi Shimizu's quest to achieve a …

Universal design aims to create an environment accessible to all, regardless of age, or linguistic or physical limitations. As Tokyo prepares for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics, one venture firm working to make Japan…

Though Japan is a country with a rapidly aging population and millions of vacant properties, senior citizens often struggle to find rented accommodation due to owners' concerns about the risks of elderly tenants dying a…

The goal: to develop the world's best sports prosthetic leg and win gold at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. Taking on this challenge is MIT graduate Ken Endo, selected in 2013 among Technology Review's top 35 Innova…