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We spoke with Kathy Liu, Head of the Osaka branch at Plug and Play Japan. Based in Silicon Valley, Plug and Play is a leading global accelerator and venture capital firm. The Osaka branch is actively collaborating with OIH on initiatives to revitalize Osaka, and we spoke to her about these efforts.
Hello, I'm Kathy Liu. While I often introduce myself as being from Kansai, it started with my experience of studying abroad in Kyoto (laughs). After graduating from university in China, I obtained my master's and doctoral degrees from Kyoto University. I studied law (international law) for five years and then decided to enter the workforce.
I moved to Tokyo and joined a consulting firm as a new graduate. I worked as a consultant for about ten years, spending the first three years in strategy consulting. Later, I focused on the energy industry, handling new business development and business evaluation for Japanese power companies and gas/oil companies.
Then, about three years ago, I joined Plug and Play. Although I had worked as a consultant for many years, Plug and Play invited me as an expert to help establish their energy team in Japan. Initially based in Tokyo, I was in charge of the overall management of the Osaka office a year and a half ago, and now I travel between Tokyo and Osaka.
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Plug and Play's Osaka branch operates with a team of 4-5 people. The office was established about four years ago and promotes various innovations for the Osaka-Kansai Expo 2025. We also support startups and provide new business support activities for financial institutions.
A distinctive feature of Osaka is the strong emphasis on regional contribution, which we incorporate into our activities. For example, last year we conducted a project with U-fino. Instead of matching large companies with startups, this project connected technically skilled small and medium-sized manufacturers with startups.
Precisely, we matched second and third-generation leaders of small manufacturing companies (who have technical capabilities but face management challenges) with startups that have new ideas. This initiative aimed to revitalize businesses by adding new perspectives to existing technologies. We consider this a unique approach tailored to Osaka's industrial structure.
Plug and Play's strength lies in bringing foreign startups to Japan by leveraging its global network.
Recently, we've been particularly emphasizing the value of face-to-face business interactions and have been inviting foreign startups to Japan on a large scale. In July of this year, we hosted an event in Tokyo, where we gathered about 50 foreign and Japanese startups, of which 17 were invited to Osaka for a pitch event.
We also work on taking Japanese startups overseas. In cooperation with government bodies, we organize pitch events for Japanese startups in Silicon Valley and Europe and arrange meetings with foreign investors. This provides Japanese startups with opportunities to develop global perspectives and skills.
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One of Osaka's characteristics is its high concentration of technically skilled small and medium-sized manufacturers. This has been Osaka's strength and industrial characteristic for many years. Revitalizing these SMEs is challenging for the administration, and we collaborate to provide support.
Recently, there's been a particular focus on the healthcare sector, especially life sciences. In June this year, the "Nakanoshima Qross" life science hub opened in Nakanoshima, creating a space where universities, research institutions, large companies, and startups can gather. By collaborating with the basic research capabilities of Kansai universities such as Osaka University and Kobe University, we can further strengthen our position in deep tech fields.
The "Nakanoshima Qross" is a comprehensive innovation facility specializing in healthcare. Large companies and startups work together to develop new medical technologies and businesses while utilizing university research results. This is expected to become a new strength for Osaka in the future.
When introducing Osaka to foreign investors, we emphasize its strengths in deep tech and healthcare, particularly life sciences. However, since "deep tech" alone is too broad, it's essential to specify the industry, such as "deep tech in life sciences."
As mentioned earlier, Osaka/Kansai has strong basic research capabilities with institutions like Osaka University, Kyoto University, and Kobe University. Based on these universities' research outcomes, there are high expectations for deep-tech development.
iPS cell research, in particular, has gained worldwide attention and is one of Osaka/Kansai's strengths. Additionally, since many life science technologies are universally needed globally, international expansion has high potential.
One challenge for Japanese startups is their need for a global perspective. Many companies think about overseas expansion only after succeeding in the Japanese market, but this makes it difficult to become a unicorn company.
For Japanese startups to succeed globally, it's crucial to target international markets from the start and raise funds from foreign investors, maintaining a global perspective.
However, in fields with global demand, such as life sciences and decarbonization technologies, Japanese startups have significant potential for worldwide expansion.
Particularly in decarbonization technology, regulations are less stringent than in healthcare, making it a relatively more straightforward field to expand into. For example, Japanese universities are conducting advanced research, such as green hydrogen research at Kyushu University and biomass-related research at Hokkaido University.
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Osaka's startup ecosystem will likely develop primarily in life sciences. We expect deep tech startups utilizing university research outcomes to emerge, centered around the life science hub in Nakanoshima.
Combining the technical capabilities of Osaka's small and medium-sized manufacturers with new startup ideas also has a high potential for innovation.
One challenge is maintaining a global perspective. For Osaka startups to succeed globally, strategies that consider international markets from the beginning are essential.
As Plug and Play, we aim to support the internationalization of Osaka startups by leveraging our network of foreign startups and investors. Simultaneously, we're focusing on creating innovation that capitalizes on Osaka's industrial characteristics.
Specifically, we organize events in Osaka in collaboration with foreign support organizations and embassies to introduce global trends and developments to local companies and entrepreneurs. For example, we're working to bring overseas advanced cases to Osaka, such as hosting joint events with Finnish smart city technology support organizations.
We're also working on creating innovations in the life sciences field across the Kansai region by collaborating with our healthcare specialist team at Plug and Play's Kyoto office. We aim to build an ecosystem across the entire Kansai region while leveraging the strengths of Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe.
The Osaka-Kansai Expo will catalyze further development of Osaka's startup ecosystem, making it a globally competitive innovation hub. This requires close collaboration between government, universities, large companies, startups, and support organizations like us to promote open innovation.
We can build a world-class startup ecosystem by maintaining a global perspective while leveraging Osaka's uniqueness. We hope that the innovations from this ecosystem will contribute to solving challenges in Osaka, Japan, and the world.
Plug and Play: https://japan.plugandplaytechcenter.com/
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