8 | The Japan Times | Monday, March 9, 2020 (Sponsored content) Produced by: GLOBAL MEDIA POST www.gmipost.com JAPANESE FIND INNOVATION BEYOND CITY OF AURORA: A GREAT HOME FOR BUSINESSES DEN: SOARING HIGHER, REACHING FARTHER SILICON VALLEY AND CAMBRIDGE ver several decades, Japanese invest- Denver International Airport and Tokyo Narita “The cost of doing business in California is ment gravitated towards certain cor- Airport in 2013. the biggest factor why companies relocate Oners of the United States for various “Because of the nonstop flight, existing here. They realize that they do not necessarily reasons: Japan’s proximity to California, the Japanese investors have expanded their op- lose their speed-to-market advantage. A ma- concentration of banks and financial firms in erations and many startups have seen the ben- jority of relocation decisions rests on northern New York, the strength of manufacturing in efits of setting up shop in the Denver Metro Nevada’s strategic location. Our trucks can de- the South and Midwest, and the indisputable Area,” said JAS Colorado Executive Director liver goods to 60 million inhabitants within a CITY OF AURORA reputation of Cambridge, Massachusetts and Claudine Locascio. day’s drive,” Northern Nevada Development AIRPORT INTERNATIONAL DEN The Anschutz Medical Campus and Fitzsimons Innovation Community in Silicon Valley as hotbeds of innovation. Highlighting the advantages of the state, Authority President and CEO Robert Hooper The airport’s iconic roof is meant to resemble both Colorado’s snow- Aurora, Colorado, are advancing patient care, education and biomedical While particular regions have established Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said: “Colorado is said. capped mountains and Native American teepees. deep ties with Japanese companies, investors one of the best places to do business. We work Home to Los Alamos National Laboratory research and technology through collaboration and innovation. Station NEXT, in partnership with from Japan remain focused on finding new hard to keep unemployment low, grow our and Sandia National Laboratories, innovation Having handled 69 million One of the main urban centers numerous major transportation Panasonic Enterprise Solutions. growth areas in the United States. technology sector, develop a talented and ed- is embedded in the culture of New Mexico. In passengers in 2019, Denver in Colorado, Aurora is the third corridors and the fifth-busiest The nation’s largest airport Collectively identified as The Mountain ucated workforce and ensure our state is busi- the southern part of the state is the world’s International Airport (DEN) has most populous city in the state international airport in the coun- by land area, DEN is the hub States, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New ness and innovation friendly. These are values first purpose-built commercial spaceport— remained one of the five busi- and the 54th most populous in try. A lot of companies find it for three U.S. carriers: United, Mexico, Utah and Wyoming are carving out we share with Japan.” Spaceport America. With Virgin Galactic as its est airports in the United States. the country. Because of its busi- very attractive to do business Frontier and Southwest. In June their own niches and building their own “We enjoy a strong partnership with Japan, anchor tenant, the spaceport can accommo- Among the 20 busiest airports in ness-friendly policies and many here, where there are fewer de- 2013, United launched nonstop unique selling points to attract more foreign our fourth-largest trade partner. Currently, date both vertical and horizontal launches. the world for several years, the amenities, the city continues velopmental hurdles and plenty flights between Denver and investment. we have about 14 Japanese FDI projects and “We are the birthplace of innovation. We sprawling hub is well positioned to attract investment, remain- of opportunities,” LeGare added. Tokyo, the demand for which has Inbound Japanese FDI in the U.S. has dou- about 50 Japanese companies that account do things differently and that’s the iden- to become a major global hub. ing the fastest-growing area in In November, LeGare and city since risen more than 60 percent. bled since 2002. JETRO’s 2018 company sur- for more than 7,000 high quality, high-paying tity of New Mexico. Under the leadership of “We really benefit from the Metro Denver since the reces- team, determined to attract “Our efforts since 2013 have vey of U.S.-based Japanese executives points jobs. We look forward to growing that number the Governor Michelle Grisham, we have fo- visionaries of the past, like sion a decade ago. more Japanese businesses to been to grow the demand be- out that 54% of Japanese companies already and continuing our mutually beneficial rela- cused on investing in clean energy, film and Federico Peña, our previous “We make it a priority to cre- the region, formed a trade mis- tween Denver and Tokyo. As of in the U.S. have plans to expand. tionship,” Polis added. TV, infrastructure and education,” said New mayor, who pursued the goal to ate an environment conducive sion to Japan to strengthen the today, United’s nonstop Denver- For this new wave of Japanese investors, Unknown to many, Utah has nurtured a Mexico Economic Development Department build this airport. His vision for to business. A few years ago, city’s global network and met Narita service remains our only many of them start-ups or small and medium- strong relationship with Japan. Trade between Division Director Mark Roper said. Denver back in the 1980s was Amazon built a 500,000-square- with key officials from Osaka, nonstop connection to Asia, so sized enterprises, the strict regulatory regimes, the two has more than doubled over the past Famous for its natural beauty and tourist ‘Imagine a Great City.’ Looking foot facility with 500 employees Yamagata, Kyoto and Hyogo, as it’s very important to us that it lack of open land and the high operating costs five years and, as of 2017, was valued at $811 sights, Arizona has created waves in the tech- back, DEN has become part here. They were so impressed well as medical and bioscience continues to be successful. That in the tried-and-tested East and West Coasts million. With both sides displaying an edge in nology and educational sectors. Institutions of building and growing that with how Aurora did business universities and research centers flight links us with Japan, one make their ventures infeasible. innovation, the aerospace, life sciences and en- like Tech Parks Arizona, overseen by the great city,” Vice President for that less than a year later, they there. of Colorado’s most important And these are the investors eager to con- ergy sectors have attracted the most attention University of Arizona, have set up incubation Air Service Development Laura added a million-square-foot fa- “With Aurora’s thriving, mul- trading partners. We will con- tribute to the Japanese government’s “Society from investors. spaces targeted solely at small-to-midsized Jackson said. cility and brought an additional tibillion dollar medical and tinue to proactively invest in the 5.0” project – a vision of the world where “There are always opportunities for addi- businesses. In 2018, DEN inaugurated ve 1,000 new jobs based on their bioscience enterprises at the Japanese market to build upon smart cities. self-driving electric cars, robots tional collaboration between Utah and Japan, With strong support and encouragement new international routes and al- experience here, not just on our Anschutz Medical Campus the strong foundation we have and artificial intelligence dominate. particularly in the areas of innovation, trade from their government, more Japanese com- located $3.5 billion to update reputation,” recalled then-Mayor and the Fitzsimons Innovation established over the past de- So, these new pioneers have come to the partnerships, technology collaboration and panies have realized the compelling need to and improve Jeppesen Terminal, Bob LeGare. Community, we see amazing cade,” Jackson said. Southwest and Mountain states, a region that cultural exchange. Our state experienced re- tap overseas markets to achieve long-term increase the number of gates in “Aurora o ers a lot more than potential to develop partner- Celebrating its 25th anniversa- invokes images of vast spaces and a history cord-breaking international success in trade growth and have had to work more closely anticipation of growth in pas- what other cities can with land, ships with Japanese businesses. ry this year, DEN has become the of risk-taking Americans exploring the New numbers by looking beyond our borders and with American universities, companies and lo- senger tra c and, under its DEN water and a predictable, effi- You can rest assured that we will largest contributor to Colorado’s Frontier. encouraging direct foreign investment in our cal economic development groups to develop Real Estate arm, to develop the cient way of doing business be- continue our relationship with economy, generating around “We are so lucky to have a very active great state,” said Utah Gov. Gary Herbert, who research and recruit talent. surrounding 16,000 acres for ing just some of our advantages. Japan” he said. $26 billion in economic bene ts Japanese-American community here. As of led a successful trade mission to Japan last Another development in the United States commercial use. The project We also have ideal proximity to www.auroragov.org every year. October 2019, there were 9,276 Japanese September. welcomed by SMEs and startups is the rapid also involves the development www. ydenver.com citizens. And this number has been increas- Wyoming, while mostly known as the least growth of fab labs (or fabrication laboratories), of the 348-acre smart city Peña ing, which is a very good sign,” said Consul populous state, is also the 10th largest in which offer personal and small-scale digital CITY OF WESTMINSTER: BUILDING SMARTLY General of Japan in Denver Midori Takeuchi, America by area.