CVC in Japan: Connecting Startups with Corporate Innovation & Trends
Discover how Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) is driving startup growth in Japan. In this fireside-style session, you’ll hear insider perspectives from a leading CVC professional on how corporate investors operate, what they look for in founders, and how startups can build strategic partnerships beyond capital.
Whether you're a founder exploring funding options or curious about collaboration models between startups and large enterprises in Japan, this session offers practical, real-world insights to help you navigate and thrive in the evolving CVC landscape.
Expect honest insights, practical advice, and real stories about what works—and what doesn’t—when startups and corporates come together.
**This is a hybrid physical and live, interactive online event. You can join either online or physically. For physically joining members, please show this event registration confirmation at the entrance of the venue.**
Venue: Venture Cafe Tokyo (Hybrid: In-person + Zoom, Address for physical attendees- 15th floor, CIC Tokyo, 1 Chome-17-1 Toranomon, Minato City, Tokyo 105-6415, Tokyo, Japan)
Organizers: Founder Institute Japan X Co-Capital X Openfor.co X Venture Cafe Tokyo
Agenda:
Welcome & FI Introduction
Speakers Introduction
Panel Discussion
Q&A Session
Featured Speaker:
Yasumasa SAITO, Ph.D, Manager, CVC Department at SBI Investment Co., Ltd.
📌 Moderator :
Erdinc Ekinci - Co-Founder and CEO of Openfor.co & Co-capital.co and Managing Director of Founder Institute Japan/Korea/Taiwan
Who Should Attend?
Startup founders exploring funding and strategic partnerships
Investors interested in co-investing with CVCs
Corporate innovation teams looking to collaborate with startups
Anyone curious about Japan’s evolving venture ecosystem
What You Will Learn:
How CVCs operate differently from traditional VCs
What Japanese corporates look for in startups
How to approach and collaborate with CVCs effectively
Insights on building long-term value beyond capital
Real-world examples and founder-CVC success stories
About the Ecosystem Organization:
Founder Institute: The Founder Institute is the world’s largest startup accelerator, helping entrepreneurs around the globe turn ideas into impactful technology companies. With over 8,000 alumni and $BN raised since 2009, there are programs in 200 cities in the world. FI’s mission is to empower entrepreneurs to build meaningful technology businesses.
Venture Cafe Tokyo: A global community where various innovators, including entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, and students, gather, connect, and create innovation in society through a variety of programs.
Openfor.co: A “Global Partnership Accelerator” originated in Silicon Valley that combined with an online platform and marketplace for learning, building, launching, monetizing, and growing partner ecosystems and collaborative community around you for achieving effective marketing, sales, community building, GTM, fundraising, and many more.
Co-Capital: Co-Capital is a VC that supports startups, investors, and governments by providing extensive networks, programs, and strategic guidance, helping them gain international traction, and funding opportunities through a collaborative ecosystem focusing on creating synergies among EdTech, Wellness, FinTech, and Deep Tech to foster a cohesive ecosystem where each sector supports and enhances the others with it's regional focus on East Asia to Silicon Valley.
SBI Investment: SBI Investment is one of Japan's leading venture capital firms that operates and manages venture capital funds under the management philosophy of becoming a leading company that will create and develop core industries of the 21st century as a "new industry creator."