Japan is left out of the world wave! ? January 14, 21:25

China has more than 1,000 companies, Korea has 300, and France has 250.
In contrast, Japan has 70 companies.

This month's latest technology show in Las Vegas, USA, is the number of exhibitors at CES.
Most are new startups. Large companies from all over the world looking for venture capital and business partners looking for high potential investment destinations have become startups' gateways.

Can Japanese companies cope with intensifying competition? Interviewed locally. (Ryoto Iga, Economic Department Reporter)

Fostering startups Intense competition in each country

CES is held annually at a Las Vegas convention center and hotel. This is a major event that attracts about 175,000 people from all over the world, and one of the most lively places is where startups gather.

Since 2012, $ 1.5 billion (160 billion yen) has been invested in startups through CES, and this time more than 1200 startups from more than 40 countries have participated.

The specially prepared venue is called “Eureka Park”.

Eureka, an ancient Greek mathematician who is screaming Archimedes, is used to rejoice in discovering and inventing it. We want visitors to feel the surprises and discoveries of entrepreneurs.

The booth in France was prominent near the entrance.
There are about 250 companies (including large companies), including AI companies and companies that provide agricultural systems using sensors. I felt that "French Tech" had a solid presence.

Besides, Korea and Israel.
There are also Europeans like Italy, Britain and Switzerland, and countries like Thailand, Morocco and Ukraine.

There is a strong sense of crisis in every nation that there is no economic growth in the country if you do not foster startups that produce innovative technologies and ideas with ideas that large companies do not have.

Competition between countries is intensifying.

The most prominent are the Chinese.

According to CES, more than 1,000 of the 4,500 exhibiting companies, both large and small, are Chinese companies, and more than 400 exhibitors in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, also known as "Silicon Valley in China". I have.

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Japanese companies are also doing their best

More and more Japanese companies are taking part in overseas expansion.

A total of 29 companies exhibited at the booth "J-Startup" supported by JETRO.

Melody International of Takamatsu City, which developed a product that measures the condition of the fetus with a sensor and sends the data to hospitals, etc., participated for the first time.

CEO Yuko Ogata said, "When I came, I felt that I needed not only the product's functions but also the ability to appeal."

Triple W Japan of Tokyo, which developed a product that predicts the timing of evacuation with a small sensor, is the third exhibit.

Mr. Atsushi Nakanishi said, "I think companies will be consolidated by competition in the future, so how can we get in there? Not what technology is wonderful, but who's solving what suffering If you can't explain it in a single word as a "story," you won't get any attention. "

"I think we have been able to show a certain level of presence. I would like to support JETRO's overseas expansion from here." I was talking.

After all “number is power”

Some say, "The number and the country of the company are not important. They are the products and services."

On the other hand, "number is important," says Peter Weissik from Silicon Valley.

It is an investor at Pegasus Tech Ventures, a venture capital firm that has invested in more than 160 companies around the world, including companies that run US private lodging brokerage sites and genetic testing companies.

"In the end, more participants are more likely to be successful," said Weissk.

"We couldn't find any outstanding products out of Japanese companies at this CES, and feel that Japan would lose its advantage in this case." Assert that is important.

The key is

So what are the keys to success for Japanese startups?

"While Japan has always focused on technology, startups need globally different skills to be able to expand globally and be successful," said Weissk.

Specifically, (1) marketing ability to launch products that match the market,
プ レ ゼ ン テ ー シ ョ ン Presentation ability to explain not only technology but also what issues can be solved in one word,
だ It is a strong entrepreneurial spirit that actively conducts business without fear of risk.

It seems that Japanese companies have been pointed out for many years, but it is difficult to argue that it is not a technology itself, but a lack of perspective on how to bring that technology to the market and actually use it. .

At the CES, Mr. Weissk, who inspected various technologies, said, "Now, Japan still has the technology, but if it does not change, it will be left out of the world."

Eureka! No time left

Startups do not succeed with the efforts of companies alone.

It is often pointed out that it is indispensable to create an ecosystem by boosting policy aspects such as deregulation and financial support of the country, and comprehensively improving the investment environment.

To achieve this, it will be necessary to look for a Japanese model that is not the same shape as the United States and China.

The Japanese movement for that has just begun. Is it possible to create an environment where young people who discover new technologies and ideas and shout "Eureka!"

With the growing competition between startups, I realized that there was not much time left.

Economic Department reporter Ryoto Iga
Entered in 2006 Sendai Bureau Okinawa Bureau Economic Department Network Media Department
Ministry of Economy again from summer 19