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Startups across the US and Japan,
coming together in NYC.
Monday, April 11, 2016
Presented by
The Event

Come together with successful founders and gifted technologists for a full day of incredible talks and info-sharing sessions. Learn from insiders about the expanding Japanese startup ecosystem, and listen to Japanese entrepreneurs share insights and learnings from bringing their businesses to the US.

Brought to you by Japan NYC Startups, New York City’s community of entrepreneurs and technologists in the Japanese startup scene.


Meet Industry Experts

Hear from founders who launched successful international startups, and experts on cross-cultural business practices.

Sessions for Everyone

Founders, investors, developers, designers—we welcome anyone interested in Japan or in cross-cultural entepreneurship.

All-English Sessions

Sessions and keynotes will be held in English to keep our event accessible to everyone.

Open Networking

Enjoy networking over Japanese tea, beer and other specialties!

The Speakers
Satoshi Sugie
Keynote Speaker

Sugie began his career with NISSAN’s Technical Center. Exploring the world, he taught Japanese in several countries, including China and Bolivia. Upon return to Japan, he founded Smile Park, an engineering startup and focused on new product development, co-founding the WHILL project in 2011. Sugie moved to San Francisco, California in 2012, to become the company’s CEO. He is a member of World Economic Forum Davos Meeting GSC member. Sugie is a boxer: Feather weight champion in Kyoto, 3rd place in West Japan and a Light welterweight champion in Nanjing, China.

William Lohse
Keynote Speaker

William Lohse is a leading early stage investor and has been successful in media, from software, to print publishing, Web 1.0, 2.0, and now Social. He is best known as the president of Ziff Davis Publishing and founder and CEO of SOFTBANK Forums. William is also the founder of The TomorrowProject, LLC, producer of the Pivot Conference, and the founder of Software Venture Partners, an angel fund which has been investing in technology startup companies for almost 25 years, and has been one of the earliest and most active Angel investors in the emerging Social Construct.

  • Masanori Hashimoto
    CEO of Nulab

  • Rie Yano
    Co-founder and Co-CEO of Material Wrld

  • Renita Kalhorn
    Performance Coach at The Flow Factor

  • Ron Fleming
    Partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman

  • Taku Harada
    Co-founder and CEO of Peatix

  • Adam Gries
    CEO of OKpanda

  • Mariko Tokioka
    Founder and CEO of EastMeetEast

  • Yoko Gibo
    Director of Growth and Strategy at Noom

  • Jonathan Libov
    Investment Analyst at Union Square Ventures

  • Odile Beniflah
    Head of International at Meetup

  • Murat Aktihanoglu
    Managing Partner at ERA

  • Brian Waterman
    Associate at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman

  • Matt Wallaert
    East Coast Lead, Microsoft Ventures

  • Arnaud Collery
    MC and Founder of Standupforpassion.com

  • FabFoundry
    Where Japanese craftsmanship meets Silicon Alley

The Sessions
Exhibition
  • Monozukuri Alley presented by FabFoundry
  • NYC's prominent hardware startups perform interactive demonstration of their products/prototypes
12:30PM
  • Opening Remarks
1:00PM
  • Afternoon Keynote: Pathways to Success in America for Japanese Companies
  • William Lohse, General Partner of Social Starts and renowned international investor, will address how Japanese companies can successfully adapt to and navigate US markets, customers, and investors. Interview will be conducted by Taku Harada, CEO of Peatix.
2:00PM
  • Lessons and Tips from Working with International Startups in New York
  • ERA works with governments and corporations to run specialized 3-month accelerator programs, such as http://koreanya.com and http://norwaynya.com. ERA Managing Director Murat Aktihanoglu will talk about lessons learned and tips from working with international startups at ERA.
  • Fukuoka: Creating a Startup Community
  • Masanori Hashimoto, the CEO of Nulab and one of the progenitors of the Fukuoka startup movement, presents on how its startup scene gained government support to become the strongest technology community in Japan.
3:00PM
  • Global Macro Trends and Startup Course-Setting
  • A panel discussion with CEOs discussing the global macro trends in technology, society, and economics, and how executives interpret those trends and set the course for their businesses.
  • Mental Game for Innovation
  • Executive coach Renita Kalhorn discusses how human biology and social threats in your environment keep you and your team from releasing their full creative and innovative powers.
4:00PM
  • Panel Discussion: Launching Products in Japan
  • Perspectives and wisdom on launching products in the Japanese market from the perspectives of CEO, business development, and localization.
  • Structuring Your Startup for Success
  • Legal tips and strategies to facilitate smooth fundraising and exit transactions". Attendees will learn the fundamental corporate, employment, tax and intellectual property considerations for optimizing outcomes for your startup.
5:00PM
  • Evening Keynote: How to disrupt personal mobility industry
5:45PM
  • Closing Remarks
6:00PM
  • Open Networking
  • Hang out and network after the event! Food, drink, and beer will be provided!
Location
Join us at Microsoft in the heart of Manhattan.
Monday, April 11, 2016
11 Times Square
New York, NY 10036
Principal Sponsors
Join us for If Conference.
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