Collaboration with Israel will boost Japan’s innovation mojo, says VC firm
When we talk about startup activity in Southeast and East Asia, countries that readily come to mind are Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. While Japan is a large economy, its startups aren’t performing on par with their regional counterparts.
“Japan is struggling because of its culture,” says Yony Golan, head of operations at Samurai Incubate. “There are many reasons for this, but the fact is they are behind other Asian countries. They need to catch up as in a few years they won’t have cutting-edge innovation.”
Earlier this year, Japan-headquartered VC firm Samurai Incubate announced the launch of its fifth fund, focusing exclusively on building a presence in Israel. Yony explains the firm’s decision to entrench itself in the Israeli ecosystem is to assist “Japanese companies and conglomerates with finding innovation.”
Samurai Incubate’s presence in Israel comes in the wake of deepening economic ties between the two countries. Trade between Israel and Japan expanded last year by almost 10 percent, reaching a total of US$1.75 billion. Several bilateral agreements were signed to increase cooperation in the fields of research, tourism, and security. [Japanese] Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also visited the country, marking the first trip by a serving head of state since 2008.
https://www.techinasia.com/collaboration-israel-innovation-mojo-japan/
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