The Hokkaido government, the City of Sapporo, and the Hokkaido Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry, has launched a support program for businesses aiming to start up or enter the space sector called STARTUP HOKKAIDO.

Applicants must have a business office in Hokkaido or plan to establish one in the future, or collaborate with a business in Hokkaido. Applicants are eligible even if they have not yet established a company, and nationality is not an issue. The program is expected to accept about five applicants, with the program beginning in April.

The Tokyo-based SPACETIDE is attached to the program to provide professional advice related to the aerospace industry. Mentors from SPACETIDE will be assigned to each qualifying company to provide information on relevant laws and commercialization.

The amount of funding for start-ups in Hokkaido in 2023 was approximately 8 billion yen, of which 60% was space-related. Kyohei Fujima, Director General of the new initiative, said, "Space has a broad base. In addition to development and manufacturing of rockets, we would like to create opportunities for new companies in satellite data utilization and entertainment.”

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Source : https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZQOFC131UC0T10C24A2000000/