STATION Ai, Japan's largest open innovation base, held its grand opening on October 31st in Nagoya City. Part of Aichi Prefecture’s startup strategy formulated in 2018, STATION Ai occupies a total floor area of 23,000 square meters to the south of Tsurumai Park in downtown Nagoya.

The Aichi Prefectural Government has commissioned SoftBank to operate the facility under a private finance initiative. Launching with 500 startups and 200 partner companies, and the facility will provide a wide range of services through collaboration with domestic and international support organizations and universities. The goal is to have 1,000 companies occupying the facility by around 2029.

At the opening ceremony, Aichi Prefecture Governor Hideaki Omura, SoftBank President Junichi Miyakawa, and STATION Ai President Hirotaka Sahashi took to the stage to talk about their hopes and expectations for the new facility. On November 1st and 2nd, there will be opening events including panel discussions and exhibitions by entrepreneurs and investors.

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