Science/Technologyを軸に、資本・人材・英知を還流させ、 世界・人類の課題を解決するためのフロンティアを開拓する
We pioneer frontiers to solve global issues of humankind, by bringing capital, talent and knowledge, around science and technology Investment Strategy
Cutting-edge Science & Technology Identifying science and tech- nology with real-world impact, originating from universities, research institutes, corporations, and governments. Rolling up technologies across organizations.
Strong Team Global Markets and F ocus on building strong man- Issues of Humankind agement capabilities that propel T arget global markets from businesses built around tech- inception. nology. Solutions for global issues faced Commitment to create strong by humankind. R&D, operations and manage- ment.
Track Record (Selected)
August, 2010 July, 2011 September, 2011 February, 2013 Acquired by Yahoo Listed on TSE Mothers Acquired by mixi, Inc Acquired by Google
Autonomous Control Systems Laboratory Ltd.
June, 2013 Listed on TSE Mothers May, 2015 September, 2017 December, 2018 December, 2015 Listed on Acquired by Listed on TSE Mothers TSE 1st section Acquired by Baidu Japan Inc. O LUXE HOLDINGS LIMITED
February, 2019 December, 2019 MBO Listed on TSE Mothers
1 Company Overview Since 2004, UTEC has established 4 funds amounting to a size approx. 54.3 billion JPY.
Founded April 1, 2004
GP The University of Tokyo Edge Capital Co., Ltd. The University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners Co., Ltd
UTEC 4 Limited Partnership
Established...... January 17, 2018 General Partners...... UTEC Partners LLP Fund size...... About 24.3 billion yen Number of Investments...... 30 companies
UTEC 3 Limited Partnership
Established...... October 15, 2013 General Partners...... UTEC 3 Partners LLP Fund size...... About 14.6 billion yen Number of Investments...... 31 Companies
UTEC 2 Limited Partnership
Established...... July 31, 2009 General Partners...... UTEC, UTEC Venture Partners, Inc. Fund size...... About 7.1 billion yen Number of Investments...... 13 Companies
UTEC 1 Exit Limited Partnership
Established...... July 1, 2004 General Partners...... UTEC Fund size...... About 8.3 billion yen Number of Investments...... 34 Companies
2 UTEC Comprehensive Support for Seed / Early Stage Startups
UTEC invests in seed/early stage startups and provides hands-on support
Initial investment Phase deals / %
UTEC 1 UTEC 2 UTEC 3 UTEC 4 3% 4% 4%
6% 24% 31% 45% 32% 34 13 31 28 42% deals deals deals deals 52% 69% 50% 38%
Seed Early Expansion Late
*1 For the definition of “Phase”, refer to 2017 National VC Association Yearbook. *2 As of June 2020. Simultaneous Parallel investments from multiple funds have been accounted in the respective fund. (FoF investments are not included.)
Strong Commitment
As a lead investor, UTEC supports the portfolio companies with financing and management issues.
Number of deals where UTEC is the lead investor deals / %
UTEC 1 UTEC 2 UTEC 3 UTEC 4
8% 100% 7%
34 44% 13 31 28 deals deals deals deals 56%
92% 93%
Lead Others
*1 Data from the past financial include deals where UTEC is the lead investor and UTEC currently is the lead investor. *2 As of June 2020 . Simultaneous parallel investments from multiple funds have been accounted in the respective fund. (FoF investments are not included.)
3 Global Expansion
Collaboration with global universities and research institutions/ UTEC portfolios global expansion
Operation Base
BUDHA Blume UTEC Deep tecH Accelerator Centre for Cellular And Molecular Platforms
SINGAPORE
4 UTEC Network
Operation Base Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
ARCH Venture Partners BUDHA Blume UTEC Deep tecH Accelerator Centre for Cellular And Molecular Platforms Stanford University
The Tokyo Keio University University of Science
Osaka University Kyoto University
Hokkaido Institute of Physical and University Chemical Research
SINGAPORE National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology
5 Startup Support Program
Investment Flow
IP
STEP 09 urnin resear h ate sta e into startu and STEP 08 runnin the business id sta e STEP 07 Earl sta e STEP 06 ettin u a or orate entit Find the ne essar resour es for the startu STEP 05 E eam buildin eam buildin STEP 04 GAP u ort usiness lan om etitive advanta e business lan a table STEP 03 Proof of on e t ar et mar et sele tion estin rodu ts STEP 02 e ision to reate a start u Ideation usiness model niversit esear h STEP 01 esear h reative Innovative
University Sponsorship To strengthen the support for researchers and students. Based on the outcomes of our Venture Capital business., we will continue to expand our support provision to other universities and research institutions, including the University of Tokyo.
University of Tokyo Graduate School University of Tokyo Graduate School Graduate School of Law and Politics Graduate School of Medicine Utilization of cutting-edge science and technology in the field of law and politics and Life Innovation Leading Program interdisciplinary research University of Tokyo University of Tokyo Graduate School Medical School Hospital Graduate School of Engineering Academic Research Grant Translational Research Initiative (TR Organization) Human Research Development Fund for Leader PhDs University of Tokyo Graduate School University of Tokyo Graduate School Graduate School of Engineering Graduate School of Engineering Self-managing healthy society COI base: Donations related to medical technology Human Resource Development Fund in Deep Learning evaluation laboratories University of Tokyo Graduate School University of Tokyo Graduate School Graduate School of Engineering Graduate School of Science Development of human resources and strengthening the research base of Global Young Scientist Future Fund Leadership Development Program (GSDM) as the leader of social concept management University of Tokyo Graduate School University of Tokyo Graduate School Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences Graduate School of Economics Agricultural Emergence Fund (Support for young researchers) Grant for the Center for Advanced Research in Finance University of Tokyo Graduate School University of Tokyo Graduate School Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduate School of Frontier Sciences Support for pharmaceutical research Frontier Area Research Grant (Shigeyuki Kawano, Professor Emeritus, The University of Tokyo) University of Tokyo University of Tokyo Graduate School Graduate School of Frontier Sciences Graduate School of Information Science and Technology GSFS Foundation Infrastructure Development Project for Information Science and Technology Research University of Tokyo University of Tokyo Institute of Medical Science Institute of Industrial Science / Research Center for Advanced Young Researcher Development Project Science and Technology Komaba Research Campus, UTEC Young Researcher's Challenge Support Program University of Tokyo University of Tokyo Head Office and Research Promotion Department Head Office and Student Support Department The University of Tokyo Outstanding Researcher Support Sports Promotion Fund / Sports Department Equipment Fund UTokyo Foundation UTEC-UTokyo FSI Research Grant Program
Nagoya University Chiba University Academic Research and Industry-Academia- Faculty of Engineering Government Collaboration Promotion Headquarters Intelligent Flight Donation Course Entrepreneurship program 'Tongali Project'
6 UTEC Portfolio Companies
Life Science & Healthcare...... p8-14 immunoSCAPE PTE. LTD. EditForce Inc. Epigeneron, Inc Elixirgen Therapeutics, Inc. OriCiro Genomics, Inc. Quantum Biosystems Inc. CREWT Medical Systems, Inc. GORYO Chemical, Inc SOCIUM Inc. TAGCyx Biotechnologies GlyTech, Inc. TRICOG HEALTH PTE.LTD. BUGWORKS RESEARCH, INC. bitBiome, Inc. Faraday Pharmaceruticals Brain Innovation Co., Inc. MiRTeL Co., LTD. MOLCURE Inc. Repertoire Genesis Inc.
IT...... p16-24 Aidemy Inc Adacotech Inc. Institution for a Global Society Corporation VividQ Limited estie, inc. ELEMENTS, Inc. Money Design Co., Ltd OPALai Pte. Ltd. CambrianRobotics Inc. SEAOS, Inc. Startbahn, Inc. SWAT MOBILITY PTE, LTD. Zenmu Tech, Inc Tellus You Care, Inc. Tier IV, Inc Japan data science Consortium Neural Pocket Inc. Finatext Holdings Ltd. Forty Two Labs Private Ltd. (Evie.ai) Fyusion, Inc. Fressets, Inc. Retrieva, Inc. Locix Inc. ROMS, Inc. WASSHA Inc.
Physical Science & Engineering...... p26-29 Algal Bio Co., Ltd. ASM, Inc. Exergy Power Systems, Inc. Green Earth Institute Co., Ltd. 908 Devices Inc NExT-e Solutions Inc. Nelumbo, Inc BionicM Inc. FLOSFIA INC. vegetalia, inc. Microwave Chemical Co., Ltd. Routrek Networks, Inc.
Fund...... p30 Deep30 Limited Partnership Blume Ventures – Fund III
Alumni...... p32-33
Team...... p34-38
7 UTEC Portfolio Companies Life Science & Healthcare
immunoSCAPE PTE. LTD.
Enabling immunotherapy through high-dimensional immune profiling
Q 1 immunoSCAPE was founded in December 2016 with licensed technology developed and studied by the lab of Dr Evan Newell at Singapore Immunology Network in A*STAR, Immunological insights provided by immunoSCAPE Q 2 immunoSCAPE employs cutting-edge technologies and mass cytometry to measure alterations of immune cells, and in particular antigen specific T cells specificity, for biomarker and target identification, offering valuable insights on efficacy & safety of immunotherapies in R&D and clinical phase.
Q 3 UTEC is instrumental in academic collaborations, business development and team-building strategy. Map of immune response landscape
EditForce Inc.
Developing novel drugs, agricultural seeds and new materials through DNA/RNA manipulation.
Q 1 EditForce was founded based on the PPR genome editing technique invented by Takahiro Nakamura, Associate Professor at Kyushu University. Editforce is rev- olutionizing the genome editing industry, which has been dominated by prior technologies overseas such as ZFN, TALEN, and CRISPR, to commercialize with the PPR manipulation tools that originated from Japan.
Q 2 PPR technology has the ability to recognize both DNA and RNA. It is the world’s first editing tool that can edit both DNA and RNA. DNA/RNA modification by PPR Q 3 UTEC has introduced management executives to the company and is also helping the founders with business planning, partnerships and IPO strategies
Epigeneron, Inc
Development of innovative drugs to realize a society that all mankind is free from the pain of diseases.
Q 1 Dr. Hodaka Fujii, the President and CEO of Epigeneron, Inc. and a Professor of Hirosaki University Graduate School of Medicine, and his colleagues have developed locus-specific ChIP technology which enables biochemical analysis of specific genomic regions. By using this technology, Epigeneron focuses on development of drugs against intractable diseases caused by abnormal functions of the genome. Locus-specific_ChIP Q 2 Novel innovative technologies and solutions such as locus-specific ChIP methods. + The ability to overcome problems not only focusing on the hot topics but also having perspectives of Epigeneron is the further future. the 1st resident company at Bayer Q 3 UTEC helps Epigeneron in planning patent strategy and introducing business supporters which Colaborator improved Epigeneron’s business foundation. UTEC is expected to provide comprehensive support Kobe. including financing and advice for building and updating business models and so forth.
8 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
Elixirgen Therapeutics, Inc
Revolutionary cures for rare diseases using ZSCAN4 cell therapy
Q 1 Elixirgen Therapeutics was founded in 2017 by Dr. Minoru Ko, currently a professor at Keio University and formerly a Section Chief at the NIH, with the aim of applying his discoveries in stem cell biology to cure diseases.
Q 2 The company is based on the discovery that the ZSCAN4 gene increases the genome stability of the stem cell and extends telomeres. The company developed the technology to introduce ZSCAN4 into cells such as hematopoietic stem cells in a way of RNA therapeutic agent which is safer and does not disturb the genome. They finished Pre-IND with U.S. FDA and now aim for early clinical trials of telomere disease including congenital keratosis incompetence Example of telomere extension by ZSCAN4 Q 3 With the help of UTEC, Elixirgen Therapeutics will deliver its first therapy into clinical trials. Elixirgen will also be counting on UTEC’s vast networks of companies, investors and human resources, and experience to advance its business at all stages of development.
OriCiro Genomics, Inc.
Synthetic biology company based on the innovative DNA assembly and amplification technologies
Reconstruction of the E.coli genome Q 1 Our technologies were invented by Dr. Masayuki Suetsugu of Rikkyo University, co-founder of the company, through his propagation process in vitro research under ImPACT program funded by the Japanese government. The formation of the company was led by UTEC for the purpose of commercializing the invention as a platform technology for Synthetic Biology which is an emerging biotech field.
Q 2 A method of cell-based cloning is widely used today for amplifying large DNA as an essential part of biotech research and development, however it is a cumbersome and time-consuming process. Our technology enables cell-free amplification Efficient synthesis of genome-size reducing the required time and effort significantly. It can also amplify sequences which are infeasible to amplify by existing DNA from multiple DNA fragments methods. The company also owns a technology that can assemble many DNA fragments into a large DNA more efficiently that current approaches. Combining our assembly and amplification processes enables an efficient synthesis of genome-size DNA.
Synthetic biology company Q 3 based on the innovative UTEC recognized the importance of these technologies at an early stage of development and led the process of com- DNA assembly and amplifi- pany formation, being involved in every aspect of the process. Furthermore, Series A investment by UTEC enabled the cation technologies company to start its projects.
Quantum Biosystems Inc.
Development and commercialization of single molecule DNA sequencer based on quantum mechanics
Q 1 Quantum Biosystems was incorporated in January 2013, and is developing innovative DNA sequencers based on the research results of Osaka University professors, Tomoya Kawai and Masatomi Taniguchi.
Q 2 Using Quantum Biosystems’ technology, it is possible to carry out DNA analysis easily, with a higher accuracy rate at a remarkably lower cost when compared to the conventional technology. It also overcomes the limitations of existing technology like DNA modification in being able to capture new information.
Q 3 Proprietary sequencer Financial support as the lead investor in Series A and follow-up investment in and sensors on chip. Series B round. UTEC is also proactively supporting the management through an external director role by providing valuable insights and advice on making important business decisions.
9 UTEC Portfolio Companies Life Science & Healthcare
CREWT Medical Systems, Inc.
Head mounting device to improve the quality of vision, based on cutting edge lens designing techniques
Q 1 The founders worked on a business proposal based on their technology and presented to their former company, HOYA. After spinning out, Professor Head mounted device “imo®” Aihara from the University of Tokyo Hospital (Dept. of Ophthalmology) joined their team as a consultant to help them with the implementation of their technology
Q 2 Building medical equipment and gadgets based on optical technology.
Q 3 UTEC supports CREWT by actively helping the management team to increase the corporate value, brushing up the business plan, providing advice on fund raising and introducing specialists.
GORYO Chemical, Inc
Development of fluorescent probes for quick diagnosis during cancer surgery
Q 1 GORYO Chemical, Inc was established in 2010 in Sapporo, Hokkaido to develop fluorescent probes not only for research reagents and new drugs but also for medical use by using chemical biology.
Q 2 Goryo has platform technology of fluorescent dyes and diagnostics, that was initially developed by Urano Laboratory of the University of Tokyo. Detection of cancer cells using gGlu-HMRG They also have the capability to produce these dyes efficiently. fluorescence
Q 3 Comprehensive hands-on support such as upgrading the business plans, financing support, introducing professional experts, etc. to realize the Human ESD (Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection) cancer long-term growth prospects of the company samples at each reaction state with EP-HMRG (before spraying EP-HMRG (left), after 5 min (middle) and after 10 min (right))
SOCIUM Inc.
SOCIUM tackles the challenge of addressing the unmet needs of patients and contribute to human health.
Q 1 SOCIUM was established in 2017, with the aim of developing drug discovery and a development platform based on our unique gene expression omnibus analysis algo- rithm by Katsuhisa Horimoto in Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST).
Service flow chart Q 2 Compared to conventional analysis approaches, SOCIUM's technology composed with several patents increases the success rate for drug discovery and development by extract- ing disease-related genes and pathways with high accuracy based on biological significance.
Q 3 UTEC supports SOCIUM in fund-raising, securing global business alli- Analysis based on our unique ances and in recruiting management executives. algorithm
10 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
TAGCyx Biotechnologies
TAGCyx aims to mend the expensive healthcare economy, by providing highly effective and safe low-cost Nucleic acid pharmaceuticals.
Q 1 With the aim of spreading “Artificial base-pairing technology” and putting it into practical use in a wide range of fields, Mr. Hirao Ichiro and others started TagCyx, in 2007. In 2016, they pivoted to drug discovery and development as their main business.
Q 2 Nucleic acid drugs can be created efficiently by using their proprietary drug discovery search technology (XenoligoTM). High affinity and high selectivity of XenoligoTM for target substances is one of the key strengths of their core technology. Xenoligo
Q 3 Helping the company to mature into a global market leader in the field of drug discovery and pharmaceuticals. Generation of Xenoligo molecules by SELEX
Glytech, Inc.
Developing exceptionally pure biopharmaceuticals by synthe- sizing and modifying the glycopeptide and glycoproteins.
Q 1 Glytech was started with the goals of the practical use of mass preparation of highly pure sugar chains in human beings and demonstration of the capability of sugar chain to functionalize biomedical products. The technology is based on the research results from the founder’s previous job at Otsuka Chemical Co., Ltd. and a collaborative research with Professor Yasuhiro Kajiwara of Osaka University.
Q 2 Commercialized drug discovery screening system and drug substance through a precise and rapid chemical synthesis of biopharmaceutical drugs and com- Attachment of Glycans to Peptides/Proteins Via Solid or pounds such as glycopeptide and glycoprotein. Solution Phase Synthesis Q 3 UTEC leverages its strong network in life sciences ecosystem to introduce sev- Laboratory eral partners and experts to Glytech. UTEC supported SeriesA fund-raising.
TRICOG HEALTH PTE.LTD.
Tricog offers an AI-driven virtual cardiologist at health centers, with a vision to achieve accessible, affordable healthcare for all.
Q 1 Tricog was founded in 2015 by Dr. Charit Bhograj, an interventional cardiologist with over 15 years of experience. Dr. Charit started Tricog with Dr. Zainul Charbiwala, an AI supports doctors. electrical engineer and a PhD from UCLA, Dr. Udayan Dasgupta, an algorithm expert and Abhinav Gujjar, a software platform architect. Tricog communicator that can interface with multiple devices. Q 2 Tricog is one of the world’s largest healthcare AI companies with over 4 million patients in 12 countries with India, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Kenya being the major markets. Tricog offers a complete cardiology platform with products for AI-driven ECG, remote cardiac ultrasound and Arrhythmia/Holter diagnosis.
Expansion to Q 3 In addition to financial support and advisory, UTEC is actively helping Tricog by introduc- 12 countries in ing Japanese medical equipment manufacturers for business expansion and hospitals/ Asia and Africa. university labs for collaborative research.
11 UTEC Portfolio Companies Life Science & Healthcare
BUGWORKS RESEARCH, INC.
Development of Novel Class of Antibiotics exhibiting Broad Spec- trum Activity against all-known classes of drug resistant bacteria.
Q 1 Bugworks was started in 2014 by industry veterans Dr.Anand Anankumar, Dr. San- tanu Datta and Dr. V Balasubramanian to tackle the issue of global Anti- Microbial Resistance(AMR). In July 2017, Bugworks became the first Asian company to win the prestigious CARB-X grant. The Bugworks Research lab in Bangalore, India has a Proprietary ELUDE™ platform of Bugworks team of several scientists and PhDs with a combined experience over 200 years in drug discovery. Bugworks has an extended team in US and Australia.
Q 2 Using proprietary ELUDE™ platform, Bugworks has come up with a first- in-class antibiotic series with the following characteris- tics: Efflux Unbinding, Dual-target Mechanism attacking two enzymes relating to bacterial DNA structure(Gyrase and Topo IV) and Broad-spectrum utility effective on all known classes of drug resistant bacteria (NDM, KPC, ESBL,MRSA etc.)
Q 3 UTEC supports Bugworks by providing opportunities to partner with Japanese pharmaceutical companies and collaborate with Professor Satoshi Murakami of Tokyo Institute of Technology, who clarified the crystal structure of multidrug release transporter AcrB, as the company's Scientific Advisor. UTEC also provides active financial advisory and fundraising support to Bugworks.
bitBiome, Inc.
Create new industries and precision medicine from micro- organisms using next-generation microbiome analysis Workflow of single-cell genomics
Q 1 bitBiome was founded in 2018 with an aim to create new industries using next-generation microbiome analysis that is based on the single-cell genomics technology developed by Dr. Masahito Hosokawa, CSO of bitBiome and an assistant professor at Waseda University.
Q 2 bitBiome has developed the world's first single cell genomics technology that can be applied to microorganisms. This technol- ogy has made it possible to accumulate microbial genomic data, which gives you a huge amount of information with overwhelm- ingly high accuracy compared with conventional techniques. bitBiome provides customers with unique joint research and contract analysis services.
Q 3 UTEC, as a co-founder, has supported us from various aspects such as developing business plans and intellectual property strate- gies and building a high-performing team.
Faraday Pharmaceuticals
Pioneering the use of specific, reduced forms of natural elements — elemen- tal reducing agents — to improve quality of life after acute, critical illness.
Q 1 F araday Pharmaceuticals was founded in 2014 based on the research of Dr. Mark Roth of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, to improve the quality of life for patients suffering an acute, critical illness.
Q 2 F araday’s proprietary therapeutic, FDY-5301, has been shown to catalytically destroy hydrogen peroxide and is therefore uniquely differentiated from sacrificial anti-ox- idants such as Vitamin C, providing a key advantage in the destruction of reactive Infarct size assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance in a Phase 2 trial oxygen species.
Q 3 Support for academic collaborations, business development objectives, and regula- tory affairs especially in Japan.
12 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
Brain Innovation Co., Inc.
Contributing to medical innovation through the development of novel drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease
Q 1 Our company was founded in August 2018 with the goal of developing new drugs for the treatment of dementia, lifestyle diseases, and other conditions by utilizing the intellectual property derived from the research results of Shigeki Moriguchi of Tohoku University's Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
Q 2 Ability to progress with the development of new drugs for the treatment of dementia and other conditions using novel mechanisms unlike existing drugs through jointly owned patents of Tohoku University and this company.
Shema of cognitive function in the brain Q 3 Advice for business planning and team building as well as financial and other support in the seeding period. Expectations for further support such as continuing finance composi- tion, business development activities, team strengthening, and IPO preparations.
MiRTeL CO., LTD.
The forefront of Medical innovation: to prevent diseases, increase the life expectancy and reduce medical expenditure.
Q 1 MiRTeL was established by Prof. Hidetoshi Tahara of Hiroshima University. Prof. Tahara realized the importance of practical applications of basic research when he was faced with the loss of his co-worker who died of juvenile gastric cancer. He developed the G tail length measurement technology for pre-symptomatic test. Furthermore, he endeavors to realize a society of health and longevity through early detection tests with micro RNA.
Q 2 The first pre-symptomatic“ test” in the world using the telomere G tail length measurement technol- ogy and “early detection of disease” through the detection of unique disease-specific microRNA in body fluids.
Q 3 Supporting the company in business planning and strategies, funding, human resources manage- ment, intellectual property advisory, and license contract execution.
MOLCURE Inc.
High-functional antibody drug development platform based on next generation sequencing and bioinformatics
Q 1 Ryu Ogawa, the founder of Molcure, was striving to become a scientist at Keio University when he lost his father to cancer. This motivated him to establish a startup that enables the quickest way to make drugs by making full use of scientific advancements to develop drug for cancer.
Q 2 The company has developed a drug discovery platform that enables them to acquire high- ly-functional antibodies from antibody libraries which was unable to detect by the conventional methods by combining the conventional method for preparing antibodies with next genera- Proprietary tion sequencers and machine learning. antibody develop- ment platform : Q 3 Multifaceted support such as accelerating the business through funding, introducing collabo- Abtracer. rators with high technology-related synergies, designing business strategies and introducing customers.
13 Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 UTEC Portfolio Companies Life Science & Healthcare Origin Strength UTEC Support
Repertoire Genesis Inc.
Genetic testing and drug discovery using next-generation immune-repertoire diversity profiling.
Q 1 Ryuji Suzuki (former Shionogi employee) developed bioinformatics software for fast and accurate repertoire Un-biased evaluation od Diversity analysis on immunity cell receptors (TCR/BCR) with his original unbiased gene amplification technology. and Clonality in immune cells Q 2 Repertoir e Genesis has a unique technology to analyze immune repertoire accurately and comprehensively from both antigen and antibody factors. The company has dramatically improved the efficiency of devel- opment of therapeutic drugs and diagnostic agents acting on the immune system by monitoring immune response in-vivo in detail. Their Analysis services are being used at numerous domestic and overseas research institutes and pharma- ceutical companies including The University of Tokyo School of Medicine Hospital and The University of Cali- fornia San Diego. The company strives to further improve the accuracy of analysis by collaborative research.
Q 3 In addition to capital investment, UTEC has nurtured the company by providing the infrastructure to accel- Somatic mutation and neoantigen analysis for super-personalized mediceine erate commercialization of technology, and boosted the startup through introductions and connections to industry and academia.
UTEC Portfolio Companies
14 UTEC MEMO
15 UTEC Portfolio Companies IT
Aidemy Inc.
A leading company supporting the internalization of AI
Q 1 CEO Akihiko Ishikawa majored in the field of applied machine learning at the University of Easy to learn especially online contents Tokyo’s Engineering School. He realized the difficulty in acquiring AI programming skills, thus developed “Aidemy”, to train and increase AI engineers in short supply as of today.
Q 2 Aidemy, Inc. operates “Aidemy” for both enterprises and individuals as a training plat- form specifically for AI programming, and helps enterprises clients to internalize AI-re- lated organizations and self-operate AI-related systems. The company’s strengths are, the user experience of starting within 10 seconds without any preparation, the track “Aidemy Technology” record of training more than 65,000 users as Japan’s largest AI training programming – A platform simplifying service, and the supporting know-hows of enabling customers to analyze their data with AI operation AI internally by offering supports on organization building to AI operation.
Internalization of AI-related organizations and self-oper- Q 3 UTEC supports us with financing since our seed-stage, building management strategies, ation of AI-related systems team building and introducing potential clients.
Adacotech Inc.
Accelerate the evolution and revolution of manufacturing
Q 1 Adacotech Inc. was incorporated in 2012 in order to commercialize proprietary anomaly detection AI products which utilize patent granted technology of National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology; adaptive learning system with High-order Local Auto-Correlation and multivariate data analysis. Anomaly detection with close-to-zero error
Q 2 Adacotech Inc.’s proprietary AI products provides close-to-zero false negative (detecting abnormal objects as normal) with very small number of training data. The products achieve high speed inference and explainability. These competitive advantages allow Adacotech Inc. to close deals of not just proof-of-concepts but also actual projects in the manufactur- ing industry. Actual application; Q 3 automated tunnel UTEC is instrumental in various startup management frontlines; the Series A financing, inspection corporate strategy, business development, and recruiting/team building.
Institution for a Global Society Corporation
Temperament and competency AI measurement tool for People Analytics and Ed Tech startup leveraging a cutting-edge corporations, GROW360, reveals the actual state of human technology for talent assessment and education. resource evaluation capabilities (average multidimensional evaluation score x score distribution). Q 1 The levels of creativity and competence of Japanese companies are dropping alarmingly. The reason behind this is the lack of scientific thought process and conventional HR management. IGS aims to solve this problem. The IAT, a game-style temperament measurement experience as a quantz analyst and management in the world’s biggest tool, can measure potential temperamental tendencies with the movement of a finger. investment company and the personal connection with researchers of the Obtained an international patent. University of Tokyo was the starting point of establishing the company.
Q 2 IGS Team is comprised of experts in Machine learning and NLP, who provide The class management function of Ai GROW, a tempera- ment and competency AI measurement tool for educational Japan’s most advanced global education. IGS is one of the few companies institutions. Based on the results of the test, students are operating in both HR and EdTech domains over the world. mapped according to their current abilities and challenges in the areas of leadership, innovation, and thinking skills. It also suggests grouping to effectively develop your abilities. Q 3 UTEC supports IGS in advising the strategy of corporate sales, providing its wide network of connections with government entities, universities and corporates and foster collaborations and financial support.
16 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
VividQ Limited
Towards the mass adoption of 3D holographic display VividQ holographic display can Q 1 Once founded as a data compression startup, VividQ restarted as a software express "the sense of depth” startup for 3D holographic display diverting holographic technology, thanks to the support from Prof. Tim Wilkinson in Centre for Advanced Photonics and Electronics, Cambridge University. AR HUD, one of the applications Q 2 1.High-quality, fast and scalable calculation technology of computer-generated of VividQ software, superimposes information in a form that matches hologram / computational aberration correction technology, and fast imple- the object in the real world mentation of them based on GPU computing, . 2.Partnership with major suppliers for each part required for holographic display configuration VividQ team with many PhD Q 3 Co-leading of the seed round, Business development in the Japanese market, talents from University of Relationship development with Japanese academia Cambridge, Oxford University, and so on
estie, inc.
UPDATE REAL ESTATE
Q 1 By experiencing international real estate investment and office rent sales in Mitsubishi Estate, Mr. Hirai developed statistics analysis for analyzing individual real estate performance. Through these experiences, Hirai found an issue that even professionals could not make an objective decision making with sufficient rational, neither did tenants. Algorithm to estimate rent of individual office building Q 2 estie have estimation algorithm of quantitative indicators and property recommend algorithm related real estate including rent with real estate experiences and insights. They provide a unique consolidated database with that algorithm.
Q 3 Series A lead investor. UTEC provides wide spectrum of value including strategy, operation, sales & marketing and HR.
Real estate integrated database on a map
ELEMENTS, Inc. AI engine focusing on 3D scanning service for Get life to be more convenient and safe human body shape data by leveraging Biometric Authentication
Q 1 Founder Yasuhiro Hisada graduated from Keio University School of Law and spe- cialized in statistical mathematics. He then started technology development withappraisal techniques and computer vision in forensic statistics. ELEMENTS is collaborating with Aoki lab at Keio University and conducting co-research. eKYC with biometric authentication cloud Q 2 Biometric authentication index, high-speed biometrics search by deep learning and unique authentication systems
Q 3 UTEC supports ELEMENTS in recruiting, business planning, sales strategies, finance Platform to connect individual and customer introduction. In addition, UTEC actively connects ELEMENTS with and city leveraging image large corporations and government agencies. recoginition and sensing technologies
17 UTEC Portfolio Companies IT
MONEY DESIGN Co., Ltd
Democratize financial services with the power of technology and create new relationships between people and money
Q 1 Japanese Yen is more volatile than before due to fluctuations in $-¥ exchange rate, inflation, etc. Since having all assets in Yen is no longer an optimal asset management method, Theo’s asset management engine, which was developed in collaboration with THEO service homepage Prof. Kato Yasuyuki of Kyoto University, can be used to provide tailor-made global diver- sification investment algorithms to retail investors. These algorithms are on par with the ones being used by high-end asset managers.
Q 2 A strong, well-rounded core team composed of members from academia, investment management, financial industry and internet service industry.
Q 3 Strengthen the legitimacy and creditworthiness of investment management policies and 231 (tried and trusted) highly customized private asset management plans for everyone strategies of the company. Appropriate and timely business advice to the management team.
OPALai Pte. Ltd.
AI-driven digital financial products focused on Commodities asset class for Pricing, Hedging and Trading.
Q 1 OP ALai was started in June 2017 by Pravin Chandrasekaran, a Harvard alumnus, who has two (2) decades of experi- ence in commodities derivates across seven (7) countries in Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Rabobank and ADM. OPALai OPALai’s Product Offerings for Pricing, was set up in Singapore with the help of a S$1M non-dilutive grant by EDB (Economic Development Board). Hedging and Trading
Q 2 OPALai uses an ensemble of statistical Machine Learning and Deep Learning techniques by analyzing over 400-500 features for pricing commodities. They incorporate asset pricing techniques that have been historically used to only model equities such as Continuous-Time Finance (CTF) and apply those principles to model commodities. OPALai has over 10 global clients spread across geographies, spanning sectors such as Energy/Power, Metals and Agriculture.
Q 3 As the sole investor in OPALai’s seed round, UTEC supports them to build their footprint in Japan by facili- tating client partnerships with Trading, Financial and Manufacturing corporations, and research collabora- OPALai’s Product Performance (for Illustration purpose) tions with Japanese academia.
CambrianRobotics Inc.
Make Everything Online “Obniz” and the programming screen Q 1 Conventional single board computeres had many technical hurdleds such as setting up the development environment, requirement of special development languages and knowledge of both software and hardware. We developed “Obniz” to realize the world which everyone could make anything they want online. System diagram Q 2 “Obniz” is specialized to carry out all implementation and development via the cloud. This realized the reduction of development cost, increase of variety of capable development language, accompanying increase of available libraries, realization of complicated processing etc. Radio controlled car automated by Q 3 Advice on sales strategy, support for recruitment, introduction of corporate cus- Obniz tomers, support for legal affairs, etc. Partner who can receive broad support.
18 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
SEAOS, Inc.
Autonomous IoT, robotics, and SaaS solutions for logistics, based on proprietary algorithms. load carrier vehicle Q 1 The founder, Matsushima Akira, headed large scale global logistics projects at Accen- ture, a consulting firm. That coupled with his entrepreneurial streak at the right timing led to the founding of this company.
Q 2 Healthcare, retail, manufacturing, etc. are logistics-intensive fields, which require a great deal of logistics support from strategy to fieldwork. SEAOS is a one stop shop for all the logistics help required by a company. The company has gained deep insights/ WMS understanding into the software and hardware used in the logistics industry, thus, makes highly efficient decisions on which technology is an optimum solution to a given problem. Delivery Q 3 Helping them expand overseas. Accelerating the development of their technology management through Academia-Industry collaboration programs. platform
“Art Blockchain Network (ABN),”developed by Startbahn, designed to be an infrastructure for Startbahn, Inc. art industry utilizing blockchain technology. (https://artblockchainnetwork.com/) The realization of society where art is democratized and becomes more familiar and valuable as property and culture
Q 1 (Taihei) Shii, a contemporary artist and a graduate of the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, was concerned about the lack of technological infrastructure in the field of art although many technological infrastructures had already been developed in other fields. So, he founded Startbahn with the aim of bridging the gap between technology and art. Web service “B-OWND”,developed jointly by Tanseisha and Startbahn, on which Q 2 Startbahn has acquired related patents in Japan and the US, and there is little competition in the Blockchain x Art field. Japanese traditional craft works are sold Our team has deep knowledge of this field, so we are in a position where we can make proposals regarding active changes in it. with ABN blockchain certificates. (https://www.b-ownd.com/) Startbahn is highly recognized as a leading company in Art x Blockchain initiative in Japan. Startbahn has technical expertise in blockchain application design and development based on its continuous effort to develop and improve ABN. Web service “startbahn.org”, managed by Startbahn, on which artists and galleries Q 3 UTEC's investment in Startbahn shows a global-level trust in our commitment to blockchain technology. This is crucial sell their artworks and issue because neither legal procedure nor social credential of blockchain technology is established yet globally. blockchain certificates online. (https://startbahn.org/)
SWAT MOBILITY PTE. LTD.
On-demand dynamic routing technology for high capacity vehicles
Q 1 SWAT was first founded in 2015 with the vision of moving smart nations with on-demand high-capacity vehicle pooling services that can reduce traffic congestions, improve travelling convenience for commut- ers and optimize resources for transportation systems.
Q 2 The majority of vehicle-pooling players in the industry only offer either fixed-route shuttle services or dynami- cally-route services for smaller vehicles like cars. Unlike their competitors, SWAT is able to go one step further and offer dynamic routing of demand-responsive and high capacity vehicles, through the use of big data, machine learning and artificial intelligence. Through SWAT’s technology, their clients have been able to effectively tackle the problems of traffic congestions and reduce the number of vehicles needed on the road, while simultaneously enabling commuters to enjoy closer- to-door transport. Most of the competitors in the market are not able to provide such an advanced level of optimization, which is also why SWAT is able to top the Li & Lim’s industry benchmark, beating other competitors in the intelligent transportation field.
Q 3 Holistic business strategy advices and supports, including finance, marketing and recruiting.
19 UTEC Portfolio Companies IT
ZenmuTech, Inc
Provides next-generation security infrastructure and contributes to high security society with “secret distribution technology”
Q 1 The founders envision to build a safe and stable ICT environment without com- promising on the ease of use and convenience. They aim to build a security-free society by commercializing secret sharing technologies.
Q 2 Top notch R&D by partnering with top universities like University of Tokyo, Tokyo University of Science, etc. Expertise in secret sharing technology. Effective market penetration leveraging high touch sales and IT industry networks.
Q 3 UTEC supports the company in management strategy, finance, recruitment, Lixil accepts for PC solution. introducing people from the University of Tokyo and other academic networks.
Tellus You Care, Inc.
Our vision is to radically change and improve the standard of elder care with our technology and service.
Q 1 Personal elder care experiences of founders revealed large opportunity in utilizing technology to improve quality and efficiency. Founders
Q 2 The founders are alumni of Google, Apple, and Stanford University, with strong will to create a solution using cutting-edge technologies.
Q 3 Japan as our first target market, team building and business development.
Device Dashboard
Tier IV, Inc.
Tier IV crates high value mobility space time
Q 1 Tier IV was founded in December 2015 by Dr. Shinpei Kato,currently an associate professor at the Graduate School of Information Science and Technology at The Logiee_PV1 University of Tokyo, to develop a fully-autonomous self-driving platform based on the open source fully-autonomous self-driving software “Autoware” which he created while he was teaching at Nagoya University,
Q 2 Tier IV provides fully autonomous self-driving platforms and services tak- ing advantage of time and space released by automatic operation based on “AutoWare”. In December 2017, Tier IV became the first company to put a Level 4 self-driving vehicle on the public roads in Japan.
Q 3 Building management team, formulating business strategy, supporting Milee_PV2 Minivan_PV3 global expansion
20 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
Japan Data Science Consortium: JDSC
Bottom line impact by leveraging Data science technologies
Q 1 Managements developed a consortium in 2014, since they realized that Data utilization Optimize delivery route by predicting home absence would transform corporate process and social structure based on P&G and McKinsey experience. Because of business expansion the consortium has been reorganized as a corporate.
Q 2 Combination between technology from Koshitsuka laboratory in The University of Tokyo III/GSII, IoT and data utilization and Tanaka and Tanaka laboratory in the University of Tokyo department of system innovation, AI and Blockchain and business insight from managements.
Q 3 Co-founding. Business model realization support through strategy, operation and finance.
Automate picture reading and processing
Neural Pocket Inc.
Realize future social leveraging AI engineering
Q 1 Neural Pocket was started in 2018 by a former business consultant with a vision to improve our lives with the power of artificial intelligence. While AI already showed significant presence in various industries, it has not been actively used in apparel and consumer fashion industries. Fashion Pocket applies its pro- Fashion trend analysis service prietary AI algorithms to apparel and retail field to enrich people's lifestyle and to establish a global AI company from Japan. Now their technologies are expanding to real estate and advertising industries.
Q 2 Neural Pocket provides services, in areas of mobility, smart signage, smart city, smart infrastructure and demand prediction, leveraging edge AI technologies focusing on image recognition. We offer various AI analysis tools to clients in apparel, real estate and advertising industries such as fashion trend prediction, Merchandizing optimization, smart advertisement, smart city and In-store efficiency improvement.
Q 3 Based on rich experiences through investment in multiple portfolio companies, UTEC has been actively AI technology on image recognition supporting Neural Pocket in team building, financing, academia collaboration, clarification of the compa- ny’s competitive technological advantages and advice for growth.
Finatext Holdings Ltd.
Reinvent “finance” as a “service” by developing Service/ Big data/ Platform
Q 1 Finatext was established to develop and provide high-quality real-time information unlike anything before using big data analysis. Finatext’s solutions were developed by utilizing the team’s deep expertise in providing services for financial institutions and research results obtained under Professor Watanabe of The University of Tokyo. Nikkei CPI Now
Q 2 Based on deep knowledge and experience in finance, Finatext has the technological ability to analyze financial information and develop services in an easily understandable UI/UX in a very short period. Finatext utilizes economic statistical analysis technology using big data President and CEO developed by Japan’s top professionals working at the forefront of statistics and economics Ryota Hayashi research at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, and the Bank of Japan. Co-founder Tsutomu Watanabe Q 3 Overall hands-on support for both management level and on-site level.
21 UTEC Portfolio Companies IT
Forty Two Labs Private Ltd.(Evie.ai.)
Evie is your A.I. assistant who helps manage your schedule and organize meetings
Q 1 They are on a mission to free people from having to juggle busywork while doing their real jobs. Evie.AI Q 2 Evie’s initial task is to help her users manage their schedules and organize meetings. Evie runs on state-of-the-art natural language processing technology and an engine that enables her to understand real-world concepts like time, locations, and human relationships.
Q 3 Helping them with Global expansion, strengthen their technology by Team Evie connecting them to various research facilities in University of Tokyo etc.
Fyusion, Inc.
Fyuse 360° images Development of 3D image technology based on intelligent robotics and image tagging of and development of 3D spatial photograph application “Fyuse” apparel products
Q 1 The company was founded in 2013 by Dr. Radu B. Rusu, a world renowned 3D and robotics scientist who previ- ously led the 3D Perception efforts at Willow Garage. There, he created the Point Cloud Library (PCL) initiative, currently the world’s largest open source effort in 3D point cloud processing. He also serves as a Board Director and President of Open Perception, the world’s leading non-profit organization in 3D perception, which is also responsible for maintaining the BSD-licensed PCL project. Smooth Fyuse 360° Q 2 Fyusion launched its mobile photo app Fyuse, currently available the iOS App Store. Built on top of Fyusion’s image rotation with underlying 3D platform, Fyuse allows users to create and share immersive Spatial Photographs, for personal use or image stabilization on social networks. The company will continue to add features and capabilities to Fyuse to raise the bar of com- puter vision on mobile. This is just the first step in a long line of potential applications for the company’s under- lying technology. Fyusion is also licensing its patent-pending technologies and its 3D modeling platform to key players in the mobile and wearable devices sectors Shooting by Q 3 UTEC has been helping Fyusion since their founding and also led their Series A round. UTEC is also supporting the walking around company’s business expansion along with NEA (one of the largest VC in USA) and providing recruitment support. your subject
Fressets, Inc.
Realizing a society where crypto assets and blockchain-related technologies can be used in a safe and convenient manner
Q 1 The company was established by Masahiko Hyuga, who has a wealth of cryptocurrency-re- lated development experience since the early days of Bitcoin around 2014. He founded the We support six major cryptocurrencies in Japanese crypto asset exchanges company with an aim to solve vulnerabilities in wallet systems of cryptocurrency exchanges and to develop leading products and services related to crypto assets and blockchain.
Q 2 The team has highly skilled engineers capable of developing secure wallet systems for a variety of crypto assets, and have the potential to launch revolutionary products and services in the field of blockchains.
Q 3 UTEC supports the company in recruitment of technical experts and managerial talent, coor- dination with universities, and introduction of corporations that could potentially be partners. System diagram of the Fressets EWM System®
22 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
Retrieva, Inc.
Retrieva provides business automation solutions by leveraging state-of-the-art natural language processing technology.
Q 1 The founders realized the potential applications of NLP, machine learning and deep learning in Answer Finder several enterprise use-cases. Formerly, the team was part of Preferred Infrastructure and then spun-out to become an independent company. Mr. Kawahara, who was a manager in the Manufac- turing Division of Preferred Infrastructure, and Mr. Nishitoba, an alumnus of The University of Tokyo Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, and four others founded the company.
Q 2 Retrieva team has deep expertise in the fields of NLP, Machine Learning and Deep Learning. The team is also well-equipped in using the aforementioned technologies to solve the problems of enterprise customers and making the service user-friendly. VoC Analyzer Q 3 UTEC offers comprehensive pro-active support in strategy development, recruitment of top-notch talent, customer introductions, pioneering partners and future financing.
Locix Inc.
Developing products and solutions based on its location-aware, visual, and ultra-low power wireless sensor platform
Q 1 Locix was founded to develop the ultimate wireless sensor products and services for smart home and com- mercial environments and derive substantial value for consumers and society in terms of safety, health, comfort, productivity, efficiency and savings. Company was founded by serial technology entrepreneur Vik LOCIX Wireless Camera Product Pavate and University of California, Berkeley, Professors Vivek Subramanian and Elad Alon. Locix’s proprietary technology is based on the founder’s research and professional experience in developing and commercializ- ing ultra-low power wireless systems, sensors, semiconductors and consumer electronic devices.
Q 2 Locix’s proprietary technology platform leverages the advanced ultra-low power, wireless, advanced sensors, energy delivery technol- ogies and data-science techniques enabling breakthrough wireless sensor products and services in terms of performance, scalability, flexibility, ease of use, and total cost of ownership.
Q 3 UTEC has been involved with Locix from its inception and led Locix’s Series A funding round with leading venture and strategic investors. UTEC team has contributed significantly in crystallizing the company strategy. Also, Locix has leveraged UTEC’s extensive network to engage with leading service providers, system integrators, OEMs and suppliers.
ROMS, Inc.
ROBOTICS OMNI SOLUTIONS: Robotics solutions for OMNI Channel and Supply Chain.
Q 1 With the introduction of UTEC, two Polish and one Japanese decided to start a ROMS R&D Center In Krakow, Poland new company together to solve the social issues through providing unmanned & automation solutions to retailers and retailers’ supply chain in June 2019 with having Japan HQ and Poland R&D Center. AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow, Poland
Q 2 Issue driven approach from global viewpoint combining with over 10 years automation, integration, and robotics experience of Poland team and over 10 years operation, business development, and retail of Japan team. ROMS was founded in 2019, the 100th anniversary year of the Q 3 Not only just provide funding, but also provide corporate management sup- establishment of diplomatic relations port, risk management, and others as the Founding Partner. between Japan and Poland.
23 Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 UTEC Portfolio Companies IT Origin Strength UTEC Support
WASSHA Inc.
Power to the people by delivering electricity to off-grid area.
Q 1 CEO Satoshi Akita chose to start the service in Africa because of huge potential, strong social impact and flexible regulations. The company was incorporated in April 2013 by CEO Akita and Specially-Appointed Professor Rikiya Abe of the University of Tokyo.
Q 2 By partnering with kiosks in rural areas of Africa, the company manages to collect a detailed landscape of data on consumer coverage and consumption trends of millions of people in the region. The management is also based in Power to the people Tanzania (Africa), which adds up as an operational advantage in proximity to the local communities, leveraging collaborations with Japanese corporations.
Q 3 As the lead investor, UTEC advises the management and introduces potential Kiosk image in Tanzania. partners as necessary.
UTEC Portfolio Companies
24 UTEC MEMO
25 UTEC Portfolio Companies Physical Science & Engineering
Algal Bio Co., Ltd.
Saving the world with plants and algae
Q 1 Professor emeritus Shigeyuki Kawano’s 20 year-long algal bio research formed the basis of the company. Chlorella has been cultivated to produce a variety of functional substances. Its color corresponds to carotenoids and long-chain fatty acids Q 2 The company is in possession of several thousand algal strains based on its Intellectual Property in the fields of algal strain production, algal cultivation, and derivation of functional substances.
Q 3 Algal Bio has been receiving commercialization support from UTEC since the earliest stages of research. UTEC has continued to provide broad-range management advice to increase the breadth and scope of the company’s projects as a lead investor. A typical algal body (left) and a super Mass-cultivation using a thin- oil-producing algal body (right) layer light bioreactor
ASM, Inc.
Delivers supermolecule “Slide-Ring Material (SeRM),” the world's first-ever commercialized material that enables molecular topology, the concept of which won Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2016 SMR structure
Q 1 “SeRM” invented at The University of Tokyo’s Kohzo Ito Lab, is a platform technol- Developed a heat ogy that can revolutionize the world of polymers. The founders including Prof. Ito dissipation sheet and UTEC grasped the potentials of the practical applications of this supermole- cule, and initiated the company to meet the growing interests of the material industry.
Q 2 ASM is the world's only manufacturer of commercialized supermolecule as of today, that enables molecular topology, the concept of which won Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2016, with its SeRM which has circular structure. The company has exclusive licenses to the related patents from the University of Tokyo. The company adds various novel functions to polymers, such as toughness, impact resistance, extensibility, and resilience, to enable existing polymers to achieve radical strengthening, and excellent haptics, shape restorability, vibration absorption and heat Polyamide modification radiation performance.
Q 3 UTEC has been actively involved in business planning even from prior to establishing the company. UTEC is also playing a pro-active lead investor role by helping ASM with financial support, team building and management.
Exergy Power Systems, Inc
Exergy Power Systems is a flexibility service provider for adjustment of sudden fluctuation of renewable energy in European and American regions that are actively tackling Energy Transition.
Q 1 Exergy was founded with the support of UTEC, which are backing energy-saving technolo- gies such as Exergy’s next-generation power battery developed at The University of Tokyo.
Q 2 Exergy’s business model is to provide flexibility service for Transmission System Opera- tors (TSO) by installing and operating low capacity/high power battery energy storage systems and combining them with various distributed energy resources. Exergy’s busi- Exergy’s 1MW battery energy storage system, installed at the E.ON Energy ness development is focused on the European market where its main strength lie. Research Center of RWTH Aachen University, Germany. Q 3 Since seed stage, Exergy has not only been backed financially by UTEC, but has also continuously been supported with business development and negotiation with various stakeholders.
26 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
Green Earth Institute Co.,Ltd.
Using Corynebacterium to solve the pressing issues of the world such as energy crisis, food crisis, and climate change.
Q 1 GEI was established as Japan's first public foundation spin-off, in order to make practical use of innovative biorefinery technology using bacterias called Corynebacterium which was developed by Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth(RITE). Using Coryneform bac- teria to produce biofuels and green chemicals Q 2 Traditional fermentation process requires biomass, but GEI can produce bio-fuels and green chemicals at low cost from non-edible biomass such as stems, leaves, and debris. Furthermore, by leveraging a wide range of domestic and overseas networks created Non-edible biomass such as barks, stems, leaves being through business activities so far, GEI has established a brand new platform for the used as raw materials bio-refinery industry.
Q 3 UTEC has been supporting GEI since the pre-conception stage and continues to offer A development base for the comprehensive hands-on support on different aspects of business. global expansion of “Green Earth Research Center”
908 Devices Inc
Creating elegant Analytical ‘tools’ from mass spectrometry
Q 1 The company started to commercialize innovative chemical analysis tools utilizing high pressure mass spectrometry invented by Professor Michael Ramsey of the University of North Carolina. Professor Ramsey is also a visiting professor at The University of Tokyo Global COE Program Mechanical Systems Innovation International Center.
Q 2 It is the only company in the world that has succeeded in developing, manufacturing and selling truly hand-held mass spectrometers. 908 Devices has a strong core team that can deliver the value of new analysis methods and maximize the applications of compact mass spectroscopy devices. M908 : World’s First Handheld Mass Spectrometer. Q 3 Helping them out in partnerships and market penetration in Japan and South East Asia.
NExT-e Solutions Inc.
We contribute to the accelerated spread of e-mobility and the widespread adoption of renewable energy by developing our original advanced battery control technologies !
Q 1 Through UTEC EIR which is an incubation program sponsored by UTEC, we have made Case of Energy Storage (Utilization of E-bus battery) our business plan and developed the first prototype BMS based upon a NEDO’s grant Core-device (Made in-house) program. After that, we have built a teamby UTEC’s entrepreneur investment.
Q 2 According to our advanced battery reuse business model due to the unique balancing technologies and the battery monitoring system which consists of IoT and AI, we provide our battery rental services to multiple customers in both E-mobility and Energy Storage fields.
Q 3 UTEC has been a partner since the beginning of our company and a director from UTEC has been participating in the operation. UTEC directed us to the innovative busi- ness models which leverage our strengths taking an initiative in the global megatrend. Battery Life Cycle Management
27 UTEC Portfolio Companies Physical Science & Engineering
Nelumbo Inc
Cofounders Dave Walther, Ph.D., Liam Berryman, and Lance Brockway, Ph.D. Materials innovation to enable the best products in energy, environment, and entertainment.
Q 1 Nelumbo was founded by UC Berkeley engineers with a lifelong desire to see broad adoption and accep- tance of materials science as a new path for delivering value to the world. The main product suite today targets longstanding frost and corrosion challenges with heat exchangers in Air Conditioners to deliver a bold move in a market that impacts billions of people and has decades of opportunity.
Q 2 •Unique, innovative platform technology in material science • Business model that allows customers and Nelumbo to share the benefit of superior technology and Applicable industries manufacturing •Excellent team
Q 3 The beachhead market for the technology platform is Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning and Refrig- eration (HVAC-R). Four Japanese companies are ranked in the top 10 manufacturers of HVAC-R, and in Artistic Example terms of customer market, Japan is ranked the second after China. UTEC is expected to assist in building a team and creating business in Asia especially Japan.
Robotic Prosthesis BionicM Inc.
Powering Mobility for All.
Q 1 Working for SONY as an engineer for a few years, the founder decided to go back to study humanoid and bionics. After 3 years of Ph.D research funded by government grant, founded the company.
Q 2 Based on advanced research in humanoid robotics at the University of Tokyo, Founder at SXSW award Sun, Engineering Ph.D, founder, and prosthetic user himself, creates highly efficient powered bionic prosthetic.
Q 3 Team building, business development and governance.
Safety Features
FLOSFIA INC.
Next Generation Power Devices from Gallium Oxide by MIST EPITAXY
Q 1 The founder of Flosfia discovered a new corundum crystal material by using the technol- ogy from Fujita Shizuo Laboratory of Kyoto University. He then joined hands with Kyoto University members to lead the commercialization of product.
4 inch gallium oxide single Q 2 Flosfia’s core technology lies in Corundum type gallium oxide fabricated by the Mist CVD crystal wafer technology from Kyoto University. It allows them to make high performance and high-qual- ity metal oxide films at a significantly lower cost through non-vacuum depositions. Gallium oxide is a material with an overwhelming potential as a power device, the company devel- ops ahead of the world.
Proprietary α-Ga2O3 SBD Q 3 UTEC leveraged its experience of investing in several tech companies and mentored Flosfia by providing business acceleration. UTEC continues to advice and cooperates with the com- pany on various aspects of research and development, team building, and capital policy.
28 UTEC Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 Origin Strength UTEC Support
Vegetalia, Inc.
Next-generation food and agricultural business through IT
Q 1 After being certified from the University of Tokyo EMP program, the founders discussed about various food, agricultural, health and environmental issues. The founders joined hands with experts from various fields in several universities, and started the company.
Corporate firm (CEO Koike) Q 2 Vegetalia Group’s products named Paddy Watch and Field Servers, allow farmers to monitor and manage their plants and agricultural lands by using sensors and ICT. The group also develops and delivers a cloud-based agriculture supporting system named Agrinote and plant pathology-related service. The company has an executive team including CEO and CFO with the experience of listing and managing a startup on Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Q 3 UTEC has supported the company by opening doors to research collaborations in universities, connections to government bodies, and providing advice on business planning and sales. Paddy field sensor “Paddy Watch”
Microwave Chemical Co., Ltd.
Revolutionize Chemical Industry by using a Novel Microwave Chemical Platform Technology.
Q 1 Associate Professor Tsukahara of Osaka University aspired to innovative for the world from Japan. His strong zeal of starting a company in Japan that contributes to saving the environ- World's first commercial-scale microwave ment formed the foundation of this startup. chemical plant(3200 t/yr) Q 2 The company’s stellar team consists of various experts such as researchers and engineers in the fields of chemistry and physics. This team has developed a proprietary platform to utilize The second commercial- microwave technology. scale microwave chemical Q 3 UTEC was involved from the early stages of the company including funding their pilot. The plant (Built in company credits UTEC as one of the few investors who appreciated their technical capabilities partner’s site) and supported their plan of building the world's first microwave factory in a situation that most venture capitalists and bankers considered impossible for a start up to build its own factory.
Routrek Networks, Inc.
Development and sales of autonomous fertigation system for small- to midsized farmers
Q 1 Agriculture in Japan and the world can be automated efficiently by using algorithms Automated and IoT equipment. Based on the results of the crop cultivation research by Prof. fertigation system, Ozawa Seiji of Meiji University, agricultural equipment with AI replaced farmers' know- priced at payback period of 12-24 how, and remarkably reduced the amount of inputs (water, fertilizers, and labor)while months for increasing the yield. average farmers
Q 2 Based on the reliable technical capabilities developed through the sales of M2M prod- ucts, and by simultaneously acquiring agri-tech knowledge from Meiji University, the company is able to develop and sell reliable products in the field of agriculture. Pene- Increase in yield at 20-30% trating target markets by partnering with overseas players and more than 200% for experienced and new Q 3 Guiding their business in the second business term, provision of know-how in overseas farmers, respectively (based on actual results) business, advising the management team and helping the IPO management structure.
29 Questions Q 1 Q 2 Q 3 UTEC Portfolio Companies Fund Origin Strength UTEC Support
Deep30 Limited Partnership
Updating the future together through the unlimited possibilities of deep learning
Q 1 Since coordination with hardware is so important for AI technologies, early-stage investment necessitates a higher risk than conventional investment for internet businesses. To enable this, an investor that can see the potential of realizing AI technol- ogies, such as deep learning, is required.
Q 2 While acting as a bridge for industry-academia partnerships, Deep30 provides technological advice for societal implementation and back office support. It estab- lishes integrated support structure that provides research development in the field of AI and, training for engineers.
Q 3 Guidance related to knowledge of business, legal, and financial affairs. required to establish and operate a VC fund. Introduction of potential customers and allies to the invested companies and follow-up funding.
Blume Ventures – Fund III
Blume is India’s largest homegrown and most active tech-focused early stage VC firm with an AUM of over $200M.
Q 1 Founded in 2010 by Karthik Reddy and Sanjay Nath, Blume raised its first fund of $20M in 2011, Blume Day 2020 which was supplemented with an Opportunity Fund. It subsequently raised a $60M Fund II in 2015, a $41M Fund IIA Opportunity Fund and a $102M Fund III in 2018.
Q 2 Blume has spurred the emergence of deep-tech ecosystem in India by investing in GreyOrange, Tricog, Locus, Carbon Clean Solutions, and many more innovation-heavy startups. Blume is also the pioneer of Platform approach in India with Constellation Blu (Advisory Services), Passion Connect (Hiring), Draper Venture Network (Cross-border support), Arka (Indo-US B2B tech) and BUDHA (deep tech investment). Some of the key exits from Blume’s portfolio include Taxiforsure (acquired by Olacabs), Zipdial (acquired by Twitter), Minjar (acquired by Nutanix) and E2E (par- Partnering with Exceptional Founders tial exit with IPO listing on NSE Emerge).
Q 3 UTEC is Blume’s largest LP from Japan and has partnered with Blume to launch an initiative called BUDHA (Blume UTEC Deep-tecH Accelerator) to invest in Indian startups working on deep science and technology, and empower them to emerge as winners in global markets. BUDHA portfolio includes startups such as TartanSense (Precision robotics for small farm hold- ers), Ethereal Machines (5-axis additive and subtractive printing), Euler Motors (EV for last mile logistics), Agara Labs (conversational AI for customer support automation) and RayIoT (contact- less monitoring of body’s vital functions)
UTEC Portfolio Companies
30 UTEC MEMO
31 Alumni Alumni of UTEC Active in the Front Lines Home and Abroad
December, 2019 Listed on TSE Mothers
Taku Toguchi DX Suite UI CEO of AI inside Taku Toguchi started investigating business potential of Artificial Intelligence in 2004. After founding a few startups that were successfully aquired, he started AI inside Inc. in 2015 to solve productivity problem faced by the aging society using AI platform. With a relentless focus on customer experience and leveraging on Taku's own library of technology patents, AI inside's DX Suite, an AI platform with applications like AI-OCR, has become the top selling SaaS product in Japan. AI inside went public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in December 2019.
February, 2019 Implemented MBO (Management Buyout)
The world’s first fully Issei Takino automatic warehouse run CEO and Co-founder of Mujin, Inc. by robots of JD.com Issei was born in 1984 in Osaka, Japan. In 2011, he established Mujin with the world-famous robot engineering expert Dr. Rosen. Before establishing Mujin, he graduated from a U.S. university and worked for the famous Warren Buffet- owned ISCAR Co. Ltd, the world’s most profitable manufacturing company; he has a shining record of achievements, including many awards for his technical solution sales activities proposing manufacturing processes. Experience at competitive production sites in Japan has given him a wide range of knowledge, pragmatism and drive to make great strides in the robot venture industry, which is considered to be particularly difficult to commercialize.
December, 2018 Led an IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers
Fully made in Japan platform designed Hiroaki Ohta for all industrial applications Autonomous Control Systems Laboratory Ltd. President, Board Director (Representative Director) Hiroaki Ohta is also an assistant professor at the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, and a research scientist of Professor Shuji Nakamura’s research group at University of California, Santa Barbara. After working for McKinsey & Company, he joined ACSL as a COO in July, 2016. He has been the President of ACSL since March, 2018. He obtained a Ph.D. from Kyoto University. With “Liberating Humanity through Technology” as his mission, he developed industrial automation technologies and IoT systems by utilizing industrial drones, enabled by the company’s core technology, developed with the vision, “think for themselves and fly.” He has implemented various projects, including utilization of drones in the logistics industry, inspections of tunnels, water pipes, bridges, and inside of ships, as well as disaster-stricken areas at the request of Japan’s Cabinet Office. The company was listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in December, 2018.
In September, 2017, GLM formed a capital alliance with O Luxe Holdings, a company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange
Hiroyasu Koma Tommykaira ZZ CEO of GLM.Co.,Ltd. He established Koma Enterprise in 2000, developed Business Process Outsourcing Operations to electronics appliances manufacturers in and out of the country, and helped the business reach annual sales of 2 billion yen. In 2010, he founded GLM Co., Ltd. (formerly known as Green Lord Motors) from the parent company, “Kyoto Electric Car Project” at Kyoto University. In 2014, the company received government safety certification for its electric sports car, which was the first to be mass-produced by a venture company. The mass production of “Tommykaira ZZ” began in 2015. In 2016, GLM announced its next-generation vehicle, “GLM G4.” In September, 2017, the company formed a capital alliance with O Luxe Holdings, a company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, to expand its business globally to European and Middle Eastern countries, as well as China.
32 UTEC May, 2015 M&A with Baidu Japan Inc.
Tao Cheng popIn Aladdin CEO of popIn Inc. After graduating from Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tao Cheng began his Master’s degree at Graduate School of Information Science and Technology of The University of Tokyo. In 2008, while he was still pursuing a Master's degree, he established popIn to commercialize his invention. In 2014, he released “READ,” a new evaluation index for Internet contents. It was employed by more than 500 major media websites in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, along with the Recommend Service. In May, 2015, the company had a business merger with Baidu, a company that runs the largest search engine in China. Currently, they are developing Home Recommendation Project, focused on ceiling IoT called, “popIn Aladdin” for households with children.
June, 2013 Completed an IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers December, 2015 Listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange
Synthesis of non-standard Kiichi Kubota peptides and targets PeptiDream Inc. Chairman Director - Board Member He joined Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., then SRL, Inc. (formerly known as Special Reference Laboratory), and served as the president at JGS Corporation. In 2006, he established PeptiDream Inc. based on Flexizyme technology developed by professor Hiroaki Suga at the University of Tokyo. He took up his current position in 2017. Their proprietary, Peptide Discovery Platform System (PDPS)enables them to produce numerous highly diverse non-standard peptides and evaluate them, which in turn allows them to develop new therapeutics using highly potent hit candidates and select lead compounds with ease. The company executed its IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in 2013 and was listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2015. The company was awarded “The 2nd Nippon Venture Award.”
September, 2011 M&A with mixi, Inc. Yusuke Asakura At the time of the foundation Signifiant Inc. Co-founder Former Co-founder/CEO of Naked Technology Inc. He is originally from Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture. After attending a training institution for horse- racing jockeys and training racehorses, he graduated from The University of Tokyo Faculty of Law, and subsequently joined McKinsey & Company. He later returned to Naked Technology, the company he established, while he was at The University of Tokyo, and served as the President & CEO. After selling Naked Technology to mixi, he joined mixi and became its President & CEO. He resigned after successfully improving business performance and served as a visiting scholar at Stanford University. He is now serving as a visiting scholar at National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies. He is also an Outside director for RAKSUL INC. and SEPTENI HOLDINGS CO.,LTD., and a Partner at Tokyo Founders Fund.
July, 2011 Made IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers
Video stabilization Masaki Hiraga technology President of Morpho, Inc. In 1997, he graduated from The University of Tokyo’s Department of Information Science. In 2002, he completed his doctoral course at the same department. In 2004, he founded Morpho, Inc., a company that conducts R&D of image enhancement technology and product development using such technology, and assumed the position as its President., He founded the company based on the belief that computer science is a practical subject, aspiring to apply cutting-edge research to solve the needs of the society, Currently, the company provides various image enhancement softwares to global smart phone manufacturers and is extending its businesses to fields of dashboard cameras, security and surveillance cameras, and network services. The company was listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in July, 2011.
August, 2010 M&A with Yahoo Japan Corporation
A system in which advertisements are displayed to users Gen Miyazawa who are in close proximity to areas specified by advertisers Yahoo Japan Corporation Director, EVP, Managing Corporate Officer Former Representative Director of Cirius Technologies Co., Ltd. After graduating from The University of Tokyo in 2004, he founded Cirius Technologies and took the position of Representative Director. Upon receiving investment from UTEC in 2005, he implemented mobile SEO projects and advertising distribution projects linked to location information for mobile devices. In August 2010, Yahoo Japan acquired Cirius Technologies. He then led the interest-match project (current YDN) as a Project Leader. In April 2013, he took up positions of (the youngest) Managing Corporate Officer and Search Service Company Manager. In April 2015, he become the President of media Company, then assumed the current position in October, 2019.
33 Team Support from professionals with diverse backgrounds Partner
Tomotaka Goji Ted Yamamoto Noriaki Sakamoto Managing Partner and President Board Director Board Director President of UTEC Venture Partners, Inc. Board Director of UTEC Venture Partners, Inc. Supervises fund management and Early stage IT and Global Strategy IT/AI, Healthcare, Finance startup investments
● Tomotaka (“Tommy”) Goji is Co-founder, ● Ted Yamamoto is a partner at UTEC focus- ● At METI, Nori Sakamoto was engaged Managing Partner, President & Repre- ing on seed and early stage information in developing the acts for SME finance sentative Director of UTEC. Since the technology investments. and home appliance recycling. After inception of UTEC in 2004, he has built leaving METI, he joined his family busi- the UTEC team, raised and managed ● He currently serves on the boards of VIVIDQ ness in apparel logistics, establishing four funds totaling over JPY 54 billion LIMITED, ROMS, Inc,, Ministry of Movement and organizing businesses. (Approx. USD 500 million), and guided Pte Ltd. (SWAT), Forty Two Labs Private Ltd. investments, value-up and exits of sci- (Evie.ai), Locix Inc., Fyusion, Inc., and others. ● At McKinsey & Company, he worked ence & technology-based startups. 11 of He also serves as an Audit & Supervisory Board on projects for pharma, medical UTEC portfolio companies went public Member of Japan Data Science Consortium devices, auto, high-tech, consumer and 11 were acquired. (JDSC) and supports Tier IV, Inc. as a board goods and retail companies in Japan, observer. Previously, he also served on the Southeast Asia, and Europe, sup- ● These UTEC funds are established boards of Mujin, Inc. (MBO in February 2019), port-ing Marketing & Sales, Supply on the premise of the Japanese law Autonomous Control Systems Laboratory Ltd./ Chain Management, R&D and M&A called "The Limited Partnership Act for ACSL ( IPO in December 2018 - 6232:TYO), strategy for 4+ years. Investment" that he authored to enact Phyzios, Inc. (acquired by Google in February in 1998 at the then Ministry of Interna- 2013), Naked Technology Inc. (acquired by ● Noriaki served as a board member tional Trade and Industry (MITI, now mixi, Inc. in September 2011) ,etc. auditor in ACSL (listed in the TSE known as METI: the Ministry of Econ- Mothers in December 2018). omy, Trade and Industry) and became ● Ted joined UTEC as a partner in 2008 from the foundation for Japanese venture Mitsui & Co., Ltd., where he was an investment capital funds thereafter. partner at Mitsui Ventures, its venture capital arm, investing in US and Japanese early stage ● Tommy has recently researched on data start-ups, working with the management to science to presume success of scientific build global businesses. Ted read Physics at the startups and analyze its factors. University of Oxford and holds M.A. (Oxon.)
Tommy cofounded UTEC in April 2004, after Ted joined Mitsui & Co., Ltd. in 1994. He left Noriaki graduated from the Faculty of his duties in the Japanese government since Mitsui Ventures after working in IT-related Economy from the University of Tokyo and April 1996, at METI, the Cultural Agency and venture capital investment between Japan entered METI. He left METI in 2008 and the Financial Services Agency. He is currently and the U.S. for 10 years. He joined UTEC in was appointed vice president of a logistics Managing Director of Japan Venture Capital July 2008. He graduated from the Depart- company. He earned MBA from Columbia Association. Tommy graduated from the ment of Physics at the University of Oxford. University. He was an engagement manager University of Tokyo’s Faculty of Law, earned at McKinsey & Company and then joined his MBA at Stanford University, and received UTEC in August 2014. his Ph.D. in data science at the University of Tokyo’s School of Engineering.
34 UTEC Team
Atsushi Usami Keisuke Ide Maiko Katadae Board Director
Life Science & Healthcare IT, Physical Science & Engineering Life Science & Healthcare, Medical Device
● Atsushi Usami focuses on seed/ear- ● Keis Ide focuses on innovative technol- ● Maiko Katadae focuses on the biotech ly-stage life science investments. He cur- ogies as well as IT-enabled solutions. and healthcare fields, taking charge of rently serves on the boards of Repertoire He spent 15 years in the US, half of due diligence in life science technol- Genesis Inc., Goryo Chemical Inc., Edit- which in Silicon Valley. ogies and investment operations for Force Inc., MiRTel Co. Ltd., Epigeneron seed and early-stage venture enter- Inc., Bugworks Research inc., bitBiome ● He currently sits on the boards of prises. Inc., and OriCiro Genomics, Inc. Nelumbo Inc, BionicM, Algal Bio, Seaos, and Routrek Networks. He ● She invested in PeptiDream Inc. (listed ● He is a JST START promotor. He provides was the lead investor and served as in the TSE Mothers in June 2013 support for Life Science Innovation Net- board director for AI inside (IPO), GLM and the first section in December work Japan (LINK-J). He gave a seminar Inc. (M&A), IID (IPO), and played an 2015) which utilizes special peptide on industry-academia collaboration at instrumental role for Phyzios’ M&A exit manufacturing techniques to design colloquiums in the Graduate Program to Google Inc. new pharmaceutical drugs. She built for Leader in Life Innovation at the Uni- management teams and was involved versity of Tokyo. in business plans and development. She also served as an auditor. ● Before joining UTEC, he worked as a strategy consultant at Mitsubishi Research Institute (MRI), serving pharmaceutical, medical device and other manufacturing companies across a range of areas including mid-to-long term management planning and new business development.
Atsushi Usami studied pharmacology He started his career in Silicon Valley as an Maiko graduated from the Department of and neuroscience and received a Ph.D. in engineer, then worked as a management Science at Ochanomizu University, com- pharmaceutical sciences from the University consultant before joining a startup as a direc- pleted the Master’s program in Chemistry of Tokyo and is a pharmacist. He worked as tor. He moved onto venture capital, first at and PhD in Science at the Department of Bio- a consultant at MRI before joining UTEC in Globis Capital Partners and then UTEC. logical Sciences, Graduate School of Science October 2013. He has a BS Tau Beta Pi from University in the University of Tokyo. She was selected of Virginia, and MS Honors from Stanford as one of the 100 Influential People of Japan University. in 2013 by the Nikkei Business Magazine and He was listed on Forbes Japan Midas List in won the Semi-Grand Prize for Woman of the 2017. Year 2014 by Nikkei.
35 Team
Partner Principal
Naonori Kurokawa Junya Yamazaki Hiroaki Kobayashi
Physical Science & Engineering, Life Science & Healthcare Healthcare/Life Science Life Science & Healthcare
● Naonori Kurokawa engages in seed ● Junya Yamazaki joined UTEC in June ● Hiroaki Kobayashi joined UTEC in and early-stage venture companies 2019 and focuses on seed/early stage August 2019 and focuses on support- utilizing physical and chemical science investments in life science and health- ing portfolio companies primarily in technologies. care. healthcare/life science space.
● He works with a wide range of startups ● Prior to UTEC, he worked at Takeda ● Prior to UTEC, he worked in medical including the University of Tokyo- Pharmaceutical (Osaka and Cam- device industry both in a start-up and based company and other domestic bridge, MA), where he conducted a MNC, where he led diverse activities university-related companies. He also financial evaluation, commercial including alliances in manufacturing, works with international deals. assessment, and financial / portfolio development and distribution, indus- management for R&D assets. He also try-academia collaborations, KOL ● He is an outside director of companies supported in-licensing deals from management, physician training and in which UTEC invests: Microwave financial and clinical perspectives. product marketing. Chemical Co. Ltd., Flosfia Inc., Quantum Biosystems Inc., Molcure Inc., Provig- ● Previously, he was an equity analyst ● He is an emergency medicine and ate Inc. and immunoSCAPE Pte. Ltd., at Goldman Sachs and Jefferies, and intensive care physician by training, Elixirgen Therapeutics, Inc. covered Japanese Pharmaceutical and worked 5+ years in multiple aca- industry. demic medical centers. ● Prior to joining UTEC, he worked at a venture capital called ARCH Venture Partners which utilizes academic research from all over the U.S.
Naonori was a researcher at the Laboratory Junya received his BS in Pharmaceutical Prior to joining UTEC, Hiroaki Kobayashi worked of Environmental Technology, Ricoh, Japan. Sciences and Ph.D. in Life Science from for JOMDD, medical device start-up and a multi- He joined ARCH Venture Partners while Kyoto University. He was an equity analyst national medical device company. studying abroad at the University of Chicago. at Goldman Sachs and Jefferies for Pharma Prior to the medical device industry, he worked He joined UTEC in August 2009. He earned industry. He joined UTEC in June 2019 after for the University of Tokyo Hospital and Hitachi his MBA from the University of Chicago and working for Takeda Pharmaceutical. General Hospital as an emergency and intensive Ph.D. from School of Engineering at Osaka care physician. University. Hiroaki Kobayashi graduated from the University of Tokyo School of Medicine (M.D.) and earned M.B.A from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan as a Fulbright Scholar.
36 UTEC Team
Associate & Data Scientist Venture Partner
Yuki Hayashi Hideki Tsuji Kiran Mysore Board Director of UTEC Venture Partners, Inc.
AI & IT,etc. Energy Transition through innovation Seed/early stage Investments in AI. Healthcare & IT
● He has been involved in UTEC as a ● Hideki Tsuji focuses on investing in ● Kiran joined UTEC in January 2018 and research assistant from 2017 and has Japan-based open innovation that has a focuses on seed/early investments in been engaged in due diligence and global impact. IT and Healthcare. He currently serves strategy proposal to investees. In addi- as a Board Observer of Tricog Health, tion, he is carrying out a data science ● He helped expand the market for Bugworks Research and OpalAI. project with the president. He has MW-scale power battery energy storage systems in North America and become an associate & data scientist ● Before joining UTEC, Kiran was the since 2019. Europe to increase renewable energy head of India/SEA Operations at after the Paris Agreement. Deloitte Tohmatsu Venture Support ● Before he joined UTEC, at the gradu- (DTVS) Japan. He supported over 50 ● He also helped expand E-mobility core ate school of the University of Tokyo, modules to Asia and Europe and com- deep-tech Asian startups by connecting he conducted a research and devel- mercialize next-generation technolo- them with Japanese corporations and oped a software to improve business gies such as the next-gen SOFC-fueled also worked closely with METI Japan, efficiency for clients in FAS industry. At cells in Japan and Europe. to lead a project called CEATEC IoT the University of Tokyo, he engaged Acceleration for Asian startups. Prior to in research on time series analysis / ● Prior to joining UTEC, he was a COO that, he co-founded a student-led social machine learning field. While studying of an Internet software start-up. He enterprise named 'Kriya'. at the university, he was engaged in led intellectual property strategy and the development of in-house data sci- business development, later acquired ● Kiran has been selected as a Young ence infrastructure at a global Ad-Tech by Sony Corporation. Prior to that, he Global Leader by Stanford ASES (USA), startup. worked on energy policies, climate St. Gallen Symposium (Switzerland) change policies including Kyoto Protocol and Yenching Academy (China). In negotiation (COP3), and innovative 2020, Kiran was featured in the presti- promotion policies at the Ministry of gious FORBES Asia 30 Under 30 list in International Trade and Industry (MITI), the Finance & Venture Capital category. Government of Japan.
He joined UTEC as a research assistant in Hideki graduated from the Faculty of Law at Kiran led India/SEA Operations at Deloitte 2017 and has become an associate & data the University of Tokyo and worked at MITI, Tohmatsu Venture Support (DTVS) Japan and scientist since April 2019. He worked as an Government of Japan. He then joined Vision- co-founded a social-enterprise named ‘Kriya’. engineer for a global Ad-Tech startup while arts, Inc. as a COO. Prior to joining UTEC in He started his career in 2013 as a Software studying at a university. He graduated from August 2006, he earned his Master’s degrees Engineer handling business analytics at Cleart- Graduate School of Engineering, the Univer- from the University of Pennsylvania Law rip India, a fast-growing online travel startup. sity of Tokyo (Technology Management for School and London Business School. Kiran graduated with a Master's in Technology Innovation), Department of Engineering, the Management from The University of Tokyo University of Tokyo (Mechano-informatics). in 2016. At UTokyo, his specialization was Deep Learning and his research paper was published in PICMET 2017. He was a recipient of full-scholarship from the UTokyo School of Engineering (SEUT).
37 Team
Venture Partner Controller HR Manager
Atsushi Shimada Hiroyuki Sakita Hirofumi Oki
Medical, Pharmaceuticals, Administration Human Resources Life Science & Healthcare
● Atsushi Shimada has more than 20 ● Hiroyuki Sakita is in charge of fund ● Hirofumi Oki is an HR strategy man- years experiences in business devel- administration, investor relations and ager for investments at UTEC and opment and licensing in the pharma- corporate management. provides support in manager recruit- ceutical industry. He also has diverse ment, organization HR design, recruit- experiences in intellectual property ● In Deloitte Japan, he had engaged in ment strategies, branding, and other work as a Patent Attorney. As a busi- regulatory audit and advisory service HR-related aspects of investment. ness development executive, he has for public companies and pre-IPO lead triple-digit-value deals locally and companies. ● He established a healthcare venture globally managing multi-discipline team and introduced managerial HR team. ● In startups, he experienced various at his previous work in a British recruit- administration duties, such as fund- ment firm. He provided a wide range ● He worked for Takeda Pharmaceuticals raising, accounting, HR, legal affairs, of HR for the healthcare field from USA and Japan as a director and Bayer etc. business to research, factories, and Pharmaceuticals Japan where he lead production, also working as a career in/out licensing, strategic pipeline consultant. development, and alliance manage- ment work, and was engaged in the ● He provided recruitment support to M&A deals with Amgen Japan KK and startup companies from when he was Nycomed at Takeda Japan. a student and gained experience in recruitment, employment branding and organization HR design.
Atsushi started his career in IP Law Firm from He joined Deloitte Japan in 2007, and Hirofumi was involved in a start-up, special- 2001 then joined Takeda Pharmaceutical engaged in regulatory audit and advisory izing in organization and HR consultation company Japan in 2006 where he spent three service as manager. while still a student. He joined UTEC as an years from 2011 to 2014 in the international After working for startups, he joined UTEC in HR manager after working in HR recruit- HQ of Takeda Pharmaceutical International January 2018. ment for web/IT industry and recruitment in Illinois USA. He jointed UTEC in 2018 after Certified Public Accountant (Japan) consultation for healthcare ventures. working for Bayer Pharmaceuticals Japan from 2014 to 2018. He graduated from Osaka Uni- versity (Engineering) and ie business school and is a registered patent attorney.
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