THE BRIDGE

Takuya Tsuchiya

Takuya Tsuchiya

Articles

Japan’s PrimeAgain raises $810,000 to further develop ephemeral video sharing app

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Tokyo-based PrimeAgain, the startup best known for ephemeral video sharing app Winker and photo collage app DecoAlbum, announced on June 11 (Wednesday) that it has fundraised about 100 million yen or US$809,000 from East Ventures, Japanese ad network company i-Mobile and Gumi Ventures, in addition to unnamed angel investors. They will use the new capital mostly to extend their app development resources. This company had been based at East Venture’s co-working space in Roppongi for several years since launch in Waseda, Tokyo, but it was also announced that its own office in Shibuya was opened  due to increase in employees. According to PrimeAgain co-founder and CEO Nobuhiro Abe, about 800 million photos are uploaded to Snapchat everyday, twice as many as that of Facebook,  acquiring about 400 million photos on a daily basis (statistics vary according to sources). Since the user base of the Snapchat app is primarily located in North America because of user’s preference about the app’s interface, he believes that there’s an opportunity for an ephemeral video and photo sharing app that is tailored for Japan and other Asian countries. Abe elaborated: Since the launch of the Winker app last year, we have made a tremendous number of improvements, repeating efforts such as collecting user feedback, rolling out new functions and approaching many clubs at universities to expand a user…

primeagain-team
The PrimeAgain team: CEO Nobuhiro Abe is second from left, CFO/COO Maiko Kojima is on right.

Tokyo-based PrimeAgain, the startup best known for ephemeral video sharing app Winker and photo collage app DecoAlbum, announced on June 11 (Wednesday) that it has fundraised about 100 million yen or US$809,000 from East Ventures, Japanese ad network company i-Mobile and Gumi Ventures, in addition to unnamed angel investors. They will use the new capital mostly to extend their app development resources. This company had been based at East Venture’s co-working space in Roppongi for several years since launch in Waseda, Tokyo, but it was also announced that its own office in Shibuya was opened  due to increase in employees.

According to PrimeAgain co-founder and CEO Nobuhiro Abe, about 800 million photos are uploaded to Snapchat everyday, twice as many as that of Facebook,  acquiring about 400 million photos on a daily basis (statistics vary according to sources). Since the user base of the Snapchat app is primarily located in North America because of user’s preference about the app’s interface, he believes that there’s an opportunity for an ephemeral video and photo sharing app that is tailored for Japan and other Asian countries.

Abe elaborated:

Since the launch of the Winker app last year, we have made a tremendous number of improvements, repeating efforts such as collecting user feedback, rolling out new functions and approaching many clubs at universities to expand a user base. While ephemeral sharing is still booking in North America, I think that it has not yet arrived in Japan.

Seeing the trend of sharing apps like Snapchat and Path Talk, I believe that social network platforms will become more natural, people enjoying more casual interactions, resulting in being used more actively. Going forward, we also want to optimize the app for smart watches.

In a month from now, the company plans to roll out a new interface and design in the Winker app so that it will be tailored to the preference of users in Asia.

Our readers may recall that Korea’s internet giant Daum Kakao recently acquired the Path messaging app in order to obtain a huge user base in Indonesia. Despite the fact that Facebook has become an infrastructure for people to share daily updates, there are still many opportunities in the space for new ways of communication.

Also, in the space of smart watches where people have operational constraints in inputting characters, another ecosystem of social network platforms will be formed in the future, represented by Nain.

Edited by “Tex” Pomeroy

Top 50: Japanese Startups You Should Know

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Asian startups are finally stepping into the spotlight, it seems. The region’s most prominent tech startup event, Echeleon, featured far more established startups this year in comparison to previous years. Many of them have already expanded their business globally, and I feel the same thing is now happening here in Japan. Here at SD Japan we have been adding Asian startup profiles to our database since January of 2013. We are proud to announce that we now have over 1000 entries for startups from Japan and around Asia. To celebrate this milestone, I’ve selected what I think are the best 50 Japanese startups from various internet sectors, in no particular order. Each is linked to its database entry, so for further information, just click through [1]. We hope this list can provide a little more visibility to standout entrepreneurs and startup folks in the country, as well as a better understanding of the space to our readers outside Japan. Update: Some people have suggested additional startups, and we’re making a note of them all for a future update [2]. So don’t hesitate to provide feedback in the comments. —RM Hot Startups Whill – A next generation personal mobility startup that…

Asian startups are finally stepping into the spotlight, it seems. The region’s most prominent tech startup event, Echeleon, featured far more established startups this year in comparison to previous years. Many of them have already expanded their business globally, and I feel the same thing is now happening here in Japan.

Here at SD Japan we have been adding Asian startup profiles to our database since January of 2013. We are proud to announce that we now have over 1000 entries for startups from Japan and around Asia. To celebrate this milestone, I’ve selected what I think are the best 50 Japanese startups from various internet sectors, in no particular order. Each is linked to its database entry, so for further information, just click through [1].

We hope this list can provide a little more visibility to standout entrepreneurs and startup folks in the country, as well as a better understanding of the space to our readers outside Japan.

Update: Some people have suggested additional startups, and we’re making a note of them all for a future update [2]. So don’t hesitate to provide feedback in the comments. —RM

Hot Startups

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  1. Whill – A next generation personal mobility startup that just got accepted into the latest 500 Startups program.
  2. Nanapi – A Japanese website that provides helpful tips for everyday life.
  3. Coiney – A mobile payment startup. Sort of a Square for Japan.
  4. CocoPPa – A mobile app that allows you to customise your phone’s icons and homescreen.
  5. Tokyo Otaku Mode – A Japanese digital media site focused on Japanese Otaku culture.

Marketplaces

 marketplace

  1. Fril – A mobile marketplace app for girls where they can buy and sell clothing.
  2. Coconala – A site where users can offer their knowledge, skills and experiences for about 500 yen (or about $5).
  3. LISTOR – An online buy-and-sell marketplace.
  4. Jimoty – A sort of Craigslist for Japan.
  5. TicketStreet – A ticketing marketplace for buying and selling concert, sport, and theater tickets.

E-Commerce

Screen Shot 2013-06-07 at 12.52.08 PM

  1. BASE – A service that lets you create your own commerce site.
  2. Monoco – A mobile/web flash sale site that sells unique designer goods from around the world.
  3. Stores.jp – A service that lets you create your own commerce site. A BASE competitor.
  4. Panoplaza – An e-commerce service that produces virtual storefronts.
  5. Oh My Glasses – An e-commerce site for eye-glasses.

Fashion and Apparel

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  1. iQON – A fashion coordination app that allows users to create their favorite looks using fashion photos available on their app.
  2. Origami – A mobile app that lets you follow updates from your favorite brands or merchants.
  3. Locondo – A shoes and fashion e-commerce site.
  4. MUSE & Co. – A members-only flash sale site that gives users a substantial discount off the market price for a limited time.
  5. Pape.mu girls – A mobile fashion media that sends fashion recommendations to users.

Hardware

Screen Shot 2013-06-07 at 12.53.11 PM

  1. Pluto – A smartphone-based remote control system for home electronics.
  2. Cerevo – A company based in Akihabara that focuses on creating consumer network devices.
  3. Sassor – A hardware startup that has developed an ‘Energy Literacy Platform’, operating in a similar space as US-based Nest.
  4. ChatPerf – A hardware add-on for your iPhone that can produce smells.
  5. Terra Motors – An electronic vehicle startup targeting the Asia market.

Crowdsourcing

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  1. Gengo – A translation platform providing translation services to individuals and small businesses, or to larger enterprises via its API.
  2. Conyac – A human powered translation service.
  3. Lancers – A Japanese crowdsourcing giant.
  4. Designclue – A crowdsourcing site specializing in graphic design. Similar to 99Designs.
  5. CrowdWorks – A Japanese crowdsourcing giant that competes with Lancers.

Education

Screen Shot 2013-06-07 at 1.00.18 PM

  1. Schoo – An online education service that offers business 101 classes.
  2. Lang–8 – A free language-exchange social network.
  3. ShareWis – A learning app that provides various online learning courses.
  4. Best Teacher – An education startup that offers an online language learning service via Skype
  5. SmartEducation – A startup that develops educational apps for children.

Food

Screen Shot 2013-06-07 at 1.00.47 PM

  1. Mill – A photo sharing app focused on food.
  2. Retty – A recommendation app for restaurants, for mobile and web.
  3. Gochikuru – A search/portal site for lunch boxes and catering.
  4. SnapDish – A photo sharing app for food recipes.
  5. KitchHike – A website that lets travelers experience meals prepared by locals.

News

Screen Shot 2013-06-07 at 1.02.18 PM

  1. Vingow – A news aggregation and reading app that allows users to get an updated news feed in real time.
  2. Gunosy – A news app that determines your interests based on your social media accounts, serving up news updates that will likely fit your tastes.
  3. Sqpress – A mobile news app that aggregates articles from Twitter.
  4. Antenna – A curation magazine app that allows you to view articles from more than 130 selected media.
  5. SmartNews – A news aggregation and reading app.

Social Good

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  1. i-kifu – A social startup that helps Japanese non-profit organizations with their online fundraising.
  2. Pirika – A smartphone app that encourages users to clean up their environment, and share pictures of themselves collecting trash in an effort to encourage others to do the same.
  3. Trapro – A platform that allows users to plan and organize tours around important social issues.
  4. CollaVol – A social volunteer platform where users can donate their time to complete certain tasks.
  5. Readyfor – A crowdfunding platform. Most users put NPO and social cause projects on this site.

  1. I previously published an article about tech Incubators and VCs in Japan. If you’d like to check that out, you can find it here.  ↩

  2. Other notable mentions: Snapeee, Midokura.  ↩

Learning from recent trends in the Asian startup space [Echelon Japan 2013 panel]

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See also the original story in Japanese. At e27’s Echelon satellite event in Tokyo today,We had a chance to hear a panel discussion with co-founders of emerging tech news media from the Asian region. The panelists included [1]: Mohan Belani, co-founder, e27, Singapore Rama Mamuaya, co-founder, Daily Social, Indonesia Masaru Ikeda, co-founder, SD Japan Moderator: Rick Martin, editor-in-chief, SD Japan How do your respective countries help support startups or entrepreneurs? Rama: Our western city of Bandung is one of the hottest places right now. Jakarta is where the money is. The investment people and those who are making money around the startup scene, such as VC firms or incubators are based in Jakarta. Typically entrepreneurs might meet and talk with advertisers or VC firms every week in Japan. Jakarta is not so open to accept entrepreneurs who might make some crazy business – however Bali welcomes them. (laugh) Our government does not actually help us much. And typically Indonesian entrepreneurs launch their business without governmental support. Masaru: Compared to other countries, Japan is very conservative. But it is fortunate that many incubators and accelerators have launched in the last few years. Some Japanese giant IT companies established subsidiaries that specializing in investing…

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See also the original story in Japanese.

At e27’s Echelon satellite event in Tokyo today,We had a chance to hear a panel discussion with co-founders of emerging tech news media from the Asian region. The panelists included [1]:

  • Mohan Belani, co-founder, e27, Singapore
  • Rama Mamuaya, co-founder, Daily Social, Indonesia
  • Masaru Ikeda, co-founder, SD Japan
  • Moderator: Rick Martin, editor-in-chief, SD Japan

How do your respective countries help support startups or entrepreneurs?

Rama: Our western city of Bandung is one of the hottest places right now. Jakarta is where the money is. The investment people and those who are making money around the startup scene, such as VC firms or incubators are based in Jakarta. Typically entrepreneurs might meet and talk with advertisers or VC firms every week in Japan. Jakarta is not so open to accept entrepreneurs who might make some crazy business – however Bali welcomes them. (laugh) Our government does not actually help us much. And typically Indonesian entrepreneurs launch their business without governmental support.

Masaru: Compared to other countries, Japan is very conservative. But it is fortunate that many incubators and accelerators have launched in the last few years. Some Japanese giant IT companies established subsidiaries that specializing in investing in startups. In terms of creating an environment where entrepreneurs can take risk, these new entities are a great support for them.

Mohan: The Singaporean government provides pretty good support for our local startup scene. When you launch a company in Singapore, if your business meets the criteria, you will receive the maximum amount of up to $5 million, not as an investment but as a grant.

Japanese IT businesses and investors are busy in South East Asia. How are they doing?

Mohan: I think DeNA is doing well, and Gumi has also a presence. And we’ve seen many Japanese VC firms in Singapore. Typically they set up a subsidiary in Singapore and expand to other SE Asia countries to invest in local startups. I think this is a good choice. Because for local startups, the government tells you where you should go for a job, which developers you should partner with, and necessary information for their localization efforts.

Rama: Compared to funding from Indonesian local VC firms, it would be better to get funds from Japanese VC firms. Among them, GREE Ventures is pretty active. DeNA is likely to come next. CyberAgent Ventures has already started investment, and they also brought their subsidiaries (such as MicroAd) to the Indonesian market. In Indonesia, Japanese companies typically are investing in local startups and bringing their portfolio companies over.

The latest startup trends

Rama: Tiket is an impressive service, and they succeeded in raising funds and are pretty aggressive. Mobile gaming and social networking services are very hot. Some Indonesian mobile gaming startups are reaching foreign AppStores in the US, UK, and Japan. (cites TouchTen as an example)

Mohan: We’re hosting satellite events all across the region, and winning teams from those startup pitch sessions are basically teams of professional people. For example, there’s a startup providing a telemedicine service for doctors. These things remind Singaporean entrepreneurs that they shouldn’t keep developing just simple social apps, and they might start providing serious solutions for serious problems in spaces like the construction, medical, and legal industries.


  1. Answers are paraphrased and not quoted verbatim.  ↩

Meet Japan’s seed accelerators and VC firms [MAP]

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In our coverage of the startup space, we frequently mention Japanese seed accelerators and venture capital firms. We thought it might be useful for you the reader if we presented them all here as one handy reference. We’ll continue to update this page when necessary, so please bookmark it or tell your friends about it if you think it’s useful. In addition to the list below, we’ve also mapped most of them above. Accelerators are marked red, and VCs are appropriately green! If you’d like to further explore prominent Japanese tech companies and startups, feel free to check out our database as well. We encourage you to add your own company and service profiles too. Japanese Seed Accelerators Open Network Lab Open Network Lab is a seed acceleration program based in Tokyo, similar to Y Combinator and TechStars, established by Netprice.com, Digital Garage, and Kakaku.com. [More info] MOVIDA JAPAN A seed accelerator by Taizo Son, the younger brother of Masayoshi Son of Softbank. Their ultimate goal is to build an eco-system in Japan and Asia that allows startups to grow. [More info] Samurai Incubate Samurai Incubate Inc was founded in 2008 to support early-stage startups in the areas of management,…

In our coverage of the startup space, we frequently mention Japanese seed accelerators and venture capital firms. We thought it might be useful for you the reader if we presented them all here as one handy reference. We’ll continue to update this page when necessary, so please bookmark it or tell your friends about it if you think it’s useful. In addition to the list below, we’ve also mapped most of them above. Accelerators are marked red, and VCs are appropriately green!

If you’d like to further explore prominent Japanese tech companies and startups, feel free to check out our database as well. We encourage you to add your own company and service profiles too.

Japanese Seed Accelerators

Open Network Lab

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Open Network Lab is a seed acceleration program based in Tokyo, similar to Y Combinator and TechStars, established by Netprice.com, Digital Garage, and Kakaku.com.

[More info]

MOVIDA JAPAN

69ee70adb43c3173dcd3d80c4b198714f5120cebA seed accelerator by Taizo Son, the younger brother of Masayoshi Son of Softbank. Their ultimate goal is to build an eco-system in Japan and Asia that allows startups to grow.

[More info]

Samurai Incubate

imagesSamurai Incubate Inc was founded in 2008 to support early-stage startups in the areas of management, marketing, sales, human resources, and finance. The company invests in start-up ventures, and they also hold advisory posts and serve as external directors of some venture companies.

[More info]

KDDI Mugen Labo

FB______KDDI_Labo__reasonably_smallA tech startup incubator founded in May of 2011 by Japan’s second largest Telco, KDDI.

[More info]

Docomo Innovation Village

20130207-00000015-rbb-000-0-viewAn NTT Docomo incubator that focus on startups and venture companies primarily in Japan that possess business models, services or technologies related to mobility, and have the potential to be developed as new or upgraded offerings by NTT Docomo.

[More info]

Early Stage VC Firms

ANRI

logoAn independent venture capital based in Japan. The fund size is about 500 million yen and their typical investment size is between 10 million and 30 million yen.

[More info]

CyberAgent Ventures

cyberagentventuresCyberAgent Ventures is a venture capital firm headquartered in Tokyo. It has a presence in South Korea, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, and India, and invests in startups in those countries.

[More info]

VOYAGE VENTURES

logoVOYAGE GROUP’s VC, investing in internet technology startups. They are active in Japan, Vitenam, and Indonesia, helping student entrepreneurs, and providing office space and mentoring services.

[More info]

KLab Ventures

logo_klabventuresA Japanese joint venture capital that was founded by KLab and SBI Investments. It invests in early stage internet-focused startups.

[More info]

insprout

logoA Japanese venture capital company that runs several kinds of business: venture incubation, investment, and corporate venturing support.

[More info]

EastVentures

logo-1East Ventures is an early stage venture capital for consumer web and mobile startups. The company invests in Singapore, Jakarta, and Tokyo.

[More info]

ITOCHU Technology Ventures

imgresITOCHU Technology Ventures (ITV), based in Tokyo, is the venture capital arm of ITOCHU Corporation.

[More info]

Globis Capital Partners

5db1e569ee7a5f7999853ffe4d00d06d_logo_gcpGlobis Capital Partners (GCP) is one of Japan’s leading venture capital firms. Globis boasts a unique combination of local presence and Western experience.

[More info]

Global Brain

Screen Shot 2013-04-01 at 4.15.57 PMGlobal Brain (GB) is an early stage venture capital firm based in Tokyo, expanding its investment activities in the US and Asia.

[More info]

CYBRiDGE Ventures

imgres-1CYBRiDGE group’s venture capital arm. It typically invests 100 million to 150 million yen in early stage startups in Japan.

[More info]

Femto Startup

imgres-2A Japanese venture capital that typically invests 200 to 300 million yen in internet business related startups.

[More info]

GREE Ventures

globalHeader-logo-01The venture capital arm of Japanese social gaming giant GREE.

[More info]

Incubate Fund

logoIncubate Fund is the largest and best known seed to early stage focused venture capital fund in Japan.

[More info]

B Dash Ventures

imgres-3B Dash Ventures does seed to late stage tech investments in Japan, Asia, and the US.

[More info]

KDDI Open Innovation Fund

imagesKDDI Corporation’s corporate venture capital fund that supports promising startup companies.

[More info]

docomo Innovation Fund

04daf2eA fund of Japan’s largest mobile carrier, NTT Docomo.

[More info]

Infinity Venture Partners

siteTitleInfinity Venture Partners Incubator Fund is a $5 million venture fund focusing on seed and early stage investments in the digital media sector.

[More info]

YJ Capital

da3179567f41a148f282d49ec98a1651593cca20Yahoo Japan’s corporate venture capital fund. Founded in 2012, the fund manages 10 billion yen and invests in startups in Japan.

[More info]

Fuji Startup Ventures

4dd3e54ce8ec3f3dc69c1a8a7060b68df97e1079Fuji TV’s venture capital arm.

[More info]