Press Release



Jul 22, 2019

Keihanna Research Complex
Public Foundation of Kansai Research Institute
Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International

A novel global startup acceleration program launched in Keihanna Science City
～Domestic and overseas startups participate in the program to form a global innovation hub～

 Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR), one of the core organizations of the Keihanna Research Complex project, called Keihanna RC, in charge of the promotion of commercialization and innovation hub, launches a novel supporting program to startups, “Keihanna Global Acceleration Program Plus” (KGAP+), utilizing the strengths of the Keihanna Science City.

 In KGAP+, the PoC-friendly feature of the Keihanna Science City enables startups selected from our global collaboration partners in Israel, USA (New York CITY and Silicon Valley), Barcelona/Spain, and Canada to conduct Proof-of-Concept (PoC) experiments of their products/services with Japanese companies as the goal of the program.

 In the fiscal year of 2019, KGAP+ is operated in two batches, from July 22nd to October 4th, and from September 30th to December 13th, with 10 companies from Japan and overseas participating in each batch. These companies will carry out presentations on the results of the PoCs and exhibit their products/services at the Kyoto Smart City Expo 2019, held on October 3rd and 4th. Five selected companies will have an additional chance to participate in special programs in Barcelona and New York City for the batch 1 and 2, respectively.
 KGAP+ makes it possible for the Keihanna Science City to act as a global innovation hub for startups in Japan and overseas for building up business in our partner global innovation hubs.


■Keihanna Research Complex project(Keihanna RC)
 Keihanna Research Complex project, called Keihanna RC, is promoted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). Since its start in September 2016, Keihanna RC supports the construction of a mechanism producing continuous scientific and technological innovations in the regions where universities, research institutes and companies are strategically integrated. So far, 45 organizations in the Keihanna Science City participate in this project and cooperate with other large enterprises, SMEs, startups, and local residents in the pursuit of world-class innovations and creation of a global innovation ecosystem.

URL：https://keihanna-rc.jp/en/


■Participated companies in the 1st batch of KGAP+ (Keihanna Global Acceleration Program Plus)
Domestic:ArchiTek Co. （Osaka city）、Astem Co., Ltd.（Kawasaki city, Kanagawa Prefecture）、ES Japan Co.（Tokyo, Toshima-ku）、CAN EAT Inc.（Tokyo, Toshima-ku）、Hacarus Inc.（Kyoto city）
Overview:ActiveScaler Inc.（USA）、Agartee Technology inc.（Canada）、Steering Machines S.L.（Spain）、Proxilogica Corp.（Canada）、2gether Music Ltd. (Israel)
URL：https://www.kri.or.jp/

■Public Foundation of Kansai Research Institute(KRI)
Location:Keihanna Plaza, Laboratory Bldg. 3F, 1-7 Hikaridai Seika-cho, Sorakugun, Kyoto, Japan (Kansai Science City)
Overview:KRI is a public corporation established for the purpose of promoting construction of the science city; and communication among residents, researchers, and companies there. KRI also plays a core part in Keihanna RC. President: Yasuo Kashihara (Vice-Chairman of Kansai Economic Federation)
URL：https://www.kri.or.jp/

■Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR)
Location:2-2-2 Hikaridai Seika-cho, Sorakugun, Kyoto, Japan (Kansai Science City)
Overview: Aiming to promote innovations and contribute to regional revitalization, ATR pursues world-leading, ingenious research achievements in computational neuroscience, life-supporting robots, wireless and communications, and life science as well as their business developments, in collaboration between industry, academia and government. In the Keihanna RC project, ATR promotes global business-to-business matchings and supports start-ups as one of the core organizations in charge of business development support and creation of an innovation hub.
URL：https://www.atr.jp/index_e.html


Contact
○Keihanna Research Complex
　　Public relations officer　Nakajima、Tatsumi（ATR）、Yamado（KRI）
　　Email：rc-presspr@keihanna-rc.jp　　TEL： 0774-95-1176（ATR）、0774-95-5047（KRI）