The city of Nagoya is strengthening its efforts to support startups by creating a database of university-owned technology and equipment that can be rented out to them, as well as introducing a new subsidy system for research and development costs by the end of 2025. The aim of this initiative is to act as a bridge between leading research institutions, such as Nagoya University and Nagoya City University, and to support innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The city will enable the enterprise-academia relationship to go both ways by also creating a database of proposed products and services from SMEs, and introduce them to appropriate research institutions. This will not only make it easier for companies to use advanced university technology, but will also provide support such as having university researchers carry out experiments on their behalf. The city will also reduce the burden on companies by subsidizing two-thirds of the development costs, up to a maximum of 3 million yen.

According to a survey by the city, many SMEs that do business with large companies have succeeded in product development through collaboration with universities, but there are also many small and medium-sized enterprises that cannot allocate resources to research and development.

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